Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Sells 689 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lessened its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,984 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 689 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in Nucor were worth $932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Nucor in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in Nucor in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NUE shares. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 price objective (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Nucor in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.13.

Nucor Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NUE stock opened at $137.75 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $32.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.60. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $112.25 and a 52 week high of $203.00. 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 company’s fifty day simple moving average is $124.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $140.34.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. Nucor’s payout ratio is presently 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.