Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor (NYSE:NUE) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

NUE has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 target price (down from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.13.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NUE stock opened at $137.75 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51. Nucor has a 52 week low of $112.25 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $140.62.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.16 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Nucor will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.16%.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of steel and steel products. It operates in three segments: steel mills, steel products, and raw materials. The Steel Mills segment produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and galvanized sheet steel products; plate steel products; wide-flange beams, beam blanks, and H-piling and sheet piling structural steel products; bar steel products, such as blooms, billets, concrete reinforcing and merchant bars, and engineered special bar quality products; and engages in the steel trading and rebar distribution businesses.