Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Sells 26,012 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. reduced its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 764,979 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 26,012 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $133,137,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Keybank National Association OH boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 3.4% during the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 19,246 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,009,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $3,481,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth about $1,230,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of Nucor by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 908,340 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,019,000 after purchasing an additional 22,470 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In other news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total transaction of $3,772,655.46. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total value of $3,772,655.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 120,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total transaction of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at $4,817,153.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,151 shares of company stock worth $7,308,683 over the last ninety days. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.67.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $194.00 on Tuesday. Nucor Co. has a 12-month low of $129.79 and a 12-month high of $203.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $190.66 and its 200-day moving average is $172.81. The company has a market capitalization of $46.56 billion, a PE ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 3.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.33. Nucor had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The firm had revenue of $7.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.01%.

About Nucor

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.