Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Given New $286.00 Price Target at KeyCorp

Key Points

• KeyCorp lowered Nucor’s price target to $286 from $288 while maintaining an “overweight” rating, implying approximately 19% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable: Nucor has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from 17 analysts and an average price target of $276.93.
• Nucor exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $4.84 in earnings per share versus a $4.46 estimate and $10.40 billion in revenue, up 23% year over year.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by equities researchers at KeyCorp from $288.00 to $286.00 in a research report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. KeyCorp's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 19.01% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Nucor from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Nucor from $294.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Seaport Research Partners increased their price objective on Nucor from $245.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Nucor from $285.00 to $280.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Nucor from $272.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $276.93.

Nucor Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE NUE opened at $240.31 on Monday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $256.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.25. The stock has a market cap of $54.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.84. Nucor has a twelve month low of $131.32 and a twelve month high of $280.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.51.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Stephen Laxton sold 3,968 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Thomas Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,212,340.76. This trade represents a 19.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Nucor in the 2nd quarter worth $4,452,563,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the second quarter valued at about $462,886,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Nucor by 0.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,539,044 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $429,298,000 after purchasing an additional 22,718 shares during the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the second quarter worth about $413,814,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth about $330,902,000. 76.48% of the stock is 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.

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