Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Shares Sold by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. decreased its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 15.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,464 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,102 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $3,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 4.3% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 9,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,533,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $276,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Nucor by 91.4% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 55,770 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $8,816,000 after buying an additional 26,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Nucor by 31.1% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 15,524 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,454,000 after acquiring an additional 3,680 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Nucor news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,636,254.72. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 98,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,499,436. The trade was a 8.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,680 shares of company stock valued at $4,773,724. 0.64% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $168.00 to $152.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Nucor from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.63.

Nucor Stock Up 0.8 %

NUE stock opened at $124.40 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $133.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Nucor Co. has a 12-month low of $112.25 and a 12-month high of $203.00. The company has a market cap of $29.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 1.60.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 12.06%. Nucor’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is 21.26%.

About Nucor

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.