Nucor (NUE) to Release Earnings on Monday

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) is scheduled to be posting its quarterly earnings results after the market closes on Monday, April 22nd. Analysts expect Nucor to post earnings of $3.60 per share for the quarter. Individual that are interested in participating in the company’s earnings conference call can do so using this link.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 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 the consensus estimate of $7.64 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 13.03%. Nucor’s quarterly revenue was down 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.89 EPS. On average, analysts expect Nucor to post $13 EPS for the current fiscal year and $13 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of Nucor stock opened at $191.36 on Friday. Nucor has a 52 week low of $129.79 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 3.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $191.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.57. The company has a market capitalization of $45.92 billion, a PE ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 1.61.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Nucor’s payout ratio is 12.01%.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total transaction of $609,092.15. Following the sale, the insider now owns 24,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,817,153.91. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Nucor news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.19, for a total value of $1,901,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,386,751.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,151 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,683 over the last quarter. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Burford Brothers Inc. purchased a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $407,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $262,000. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 3,054 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $532,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 130,120 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $22,646,000 after purchasing an additional 4,771 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NUE. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group began coverage on Nucor in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Nucor from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $192.83.

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.