Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Shares Sold by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 194,556 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 3,522 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.08% of Nucor worth $22,707,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter worth $398,077,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Nucor by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,404,477 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $280,627,000 after buying an additional 474,274 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Nucor by 528.6% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 507,715 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $59,235,000 after acquiring an additional 426,949 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,435,265 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $284,220,000 after acquiring an additional 384,205 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,758,753 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $205,282,000 after purchasing an additional 358,721 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:NUE traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $115.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,715,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,092,643. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $119.05 and a 200-day moving average of $129.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.73. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $97.59 and a 52-week high of $176.59.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $7.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.25 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The business's revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on NUE shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Nucor from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price objective on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Nucor from $156.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.33.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In other news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 34,238 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.19, for a total transaction of $4,115,065.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 162,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,590,128.67. This trade represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

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.