Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target Raised to $195.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its price target increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

NUE has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a buy rating and a $210.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Nucor from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Nucor from a neutral rating to a buy rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $192.83.

Nucor Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE NUE opened at $192.12 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.10 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Nucor has a 1 year low of $129.79 and a 1 year high of $203.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $190.87 and its 200-day moving average is $173.06.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its 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. The company had revenue of $7.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.89 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Nucor will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Nucor’s payout ratio is currently 12.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total value of $1,025,035.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,902,206.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value of $609,092.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total transaction of $1,025,035.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 85,326 shares in the company, valued at $15,902,206.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,151 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,683. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in Nucor by 150.6% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 7,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,067,000 after buying an additional 4,326 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Nucor by 106.2% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,889 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,328,000 after buying an additional 18,488 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Nucor during the first quarter worth $284,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Nucor during the first quarter worth $222,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.