Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Upgraded at Freedom Broker

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) was upgraded by equities researchers at Freedom Broker from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday, Zacks reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on NUE. Wall Street Zen lowered Nucor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Piper Sandler set a $304.00 price objective on Nucor in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Nucor from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America reduced their target price on Nucor from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Nucor from $224.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.00.

Nucor Trading Down 0.7%

NUE opened at $273.47 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $253.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $223.43. Nucor has a fifty-two week low of $140.93 and a fifty-two week high of $280.11. The company has a market cap of $62.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The basic materials company reported $5.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.84 by ($0.04). Nucor had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business had revenue of $11.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. Nucor’s revenue was up 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total value of $1,044,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,138 shares in the company, valued at $4,212,340.76. This represents a 19.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Noah C. Hanners sold 5,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.03, for a total value of $1,427,405.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,121,397.19. This represents a 10.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Nucor by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. now owns 8,091 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor by 34.1% in the third quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor by 2.4% in the third quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 1,932 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor by 3.1% in the third quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 3.6% during the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation is a steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company manufactures steel and steel products for customers in construction, automotive, energy, heavy equipment, transportation and other industrial markets.

Nucor’s operations include electric arc furnace steel mills, which produce carbon, alloy and galvanized steel products. Its product portfolio includes sheet steel, plate, beams, bars, wire and wire mesh, steel joists, deck, piling, fabricated concrete reinforcing steel and other downstream products.