Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Boosts Position in Nucor Corporation $NUE

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,685,250 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 38,990 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.73% of Nucor worth $228,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NUE. RFG Advisory LLC lifted its position in Nucor by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 2,462 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $319,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 5.6% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,330 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $184,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. IMA Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 51.4% in the second quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. now owns 221 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,099 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $531,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its position in Nucor by 1.9% during the second quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 4,326 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $560,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE stock opened at $192.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.15 billion, a PE ratio of 25.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.86. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.94. Nucor Corporation has a one year low of $97.59 and a one year high of $193.09.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by ($0.18). Nucor had a return on equity of 8.26% and a net margin of 5.37%.The firm had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor Corporation will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st 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 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is 29.71%.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.28, for a total transaction of $330,560.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,967,106.56. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John J. Hollatz sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.88, for a total value of $1,049,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 96,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,470,914. The trade was a 6.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 33,899 shares of company stock worth $5,794,577. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on NUE. Seaport Research Partners boosted their price target on Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Nucor from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Nucor in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.36.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor’s operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.

Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value?added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.