Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Stock Rating Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Nucor from “buy” to “strong-buy,” while broader analyst sentiment remains “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $276.86.
• Nucor’s stock opened at $261.05, near its 52-week high of $280.11. The company reported quarterly EPS of $4.84, beating estimates by $0.38, while revenue rose 23% year over year to $10.40 billion.
• Institutional investors own 76.48% of Nucor, although two executives recently sold shares; insider ownership stands at 0.62%.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Freedom Broker cut Nucor from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $305.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on Nucor from $295.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised Nucor from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Nucor from $308.00 to $296.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $276.86.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE stock opened at $261.05 on Tuesday. Nucor has a 1 year low of $133.78 and a 1 year high of $280.11. The company has a market cap of $59.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.62, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $253.44 and a 200 day moving average of $239.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $4.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $10.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 12.73%. Nucor's quarterly revenue was up 23.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor will post 19.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nucor news, COO Stephen D. Laxton sold 3,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.96, for a total transaction of $1,019,617.28. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,008,704.32. This trade represents a 4.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total value of $1,044,080.00. Following the sale, 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Client 1ST Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the third quarter worth $254,000. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 3.1% during the third quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Nucor by 14.6% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,927 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,152,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at $498,000. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 32.8% in the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 21,090 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,978,000 after purchasing an additional 5,214 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation is a steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company manufactures steel and steel products for customers in construction, automotive, energy, heavy equipment, transportation and other industrial markets.

Nucor's operations include electric arc furnace steel mills, which produce carbon, alloy and galvanized steel products. Its product portfolio includes sheet steel, plate, beams, bars, wire and wire mesh, steel joists, deck, piling, fabricated concrete reinforcing steel and other downstream products.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.