Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Shares Sold by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lessened its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 91,770 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 901 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $10,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Howard Bailey Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $842,000. Park Capital Management LLC WI purchased a new position in Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at $202,000. Grace & White Inc. NY increased its stake in Nucor by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY now owns 122,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $14,278,000 after buying an additional 13,100 shares during the period. Stiles Financial Services Inc raised its position in Nucor by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 4,376 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $511,000 after buying an additional 721 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 38.0% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 8,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $987,000 after acquiring an additional 2,327 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NUE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.13.

Nucor Price Performance

Nucor stock opened at $137.75 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $140.34. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $112.25 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.34 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.60.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.16 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

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

Nucor 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.