Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Nucor to “strong-buy” from “buy.” Analysts overall maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with 13 Buy ratings, four Holds, and an average price target of $276.07.
• Nucor exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $4.84 in earnings per share versus the $4.46 consensus estimate and $10.40 billion in revenue, up 23% year over year.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 76.48%, with BlackRock, Bank of America, Berkshire Hathaway and other major investors recently establishing or increasing positions; meanwhile, two executives sold shares.

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

NUE has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $270.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Nucor from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on Nucor from $245.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Nucor from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $276.07.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of Nucor stock opened at $240.31 on Friday. Nucor has a twelve month low of $131.32 and a twelve month high of $280.11. The company's fifty day moving average is $256.08 and its 200 day moving average is $231.76. The stock has a market cap of $54.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

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

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In related news, COO Stephen Laxton sold 3,968 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.96, for a total value of $1,019,617.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,867 shares in the company, valued at $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 available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total transaction of $1,044,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,212,340.76. This represents a 19.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Nucor in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,452,563,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $462,886,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake 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 worth $429,298,000 after purchasing an additional 22,718 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in Nucor during the second quarter valued at about $413,814,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Nucor in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $330,902,000. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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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