KeyCorp Cuts Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target to $286.00

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its price objective lowered by KeyCorp from $288.00 to $286.00 in a research note released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on NUE. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Nucor from $294.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $270.00 target price on Nucor in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Nucor from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Nucor from $224.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $276.93.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $246.34 on Monday. Nucor has a 1 year low of $131.32 and a 1 year high of $280.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market cap of $55.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.64, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $255.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.11.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $4.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.38. Nucor had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 12.73%. The company had revenue of $10.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Nucor will post 18.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.86%.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,212,340.76. This represents a 19.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Stephen D. Laxton sold 3,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.96, for a total value of $1,019,617.28. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,008,704.32. This trade represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Venture Visionary Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 1,932 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. RKL Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nucor by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,318 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $899,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position 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. Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its position in shares of Nucor by 4.6% during the second quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 1,396 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Nucor by 49.2% in the first quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 191 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation is a Charlotte, North Carolina-based steel producer and one of the largest steel companies in North America. The company operates electric arc furnace (EAF) steel mills that use recycled scrap steel as a primary raw material, along with facilities that manufacture and process steel products for construction, manufacturing, transportation, energy and other industrial markets.

Nucor’s product portfolio includes carbon and alloy steel in sheet, plate, bar and structural forms, as well as reinforcing steel, wire and wire mesh.