Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 30,100 Shares of Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. has reduced its stake in Nucor Corporation by 16.3%, selling 30,100 shares and leaving it with approximately 154,300 shares valued at $18.57 million.
• Institutional investors currently own 76.48% of Nucor's stock, with several firms making recent strategic changes including purchases by Putney Financial Group and MV Capital Management.
• Nucor plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share, with a yield of 1.5%, benefiting investors of record by September 30th.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. decreased its position in shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 16.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 154,300 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 30,100 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.07% of Nucor worth $18,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Nucor by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 31,595 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,853,000 after buying an additional 4,763 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 21.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 101,459 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,210,000 after acquiring an additional 17,861 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 20.5% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 28,886 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,476,000 after acquiring an additional 4,914 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 12.4% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 305,006 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $36,704,000 after acquiring an additional 33,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Nucor by 48.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,203 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $506,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Nucor from $134.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Nucor from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Nucor to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Nucor from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has 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 $155.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 6,088 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.41, for a total value of $903,520.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,464 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,333,882.24. The trade was a 21.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.90, for a total transaction of $1,449,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 84,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,183,192. This trade represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 48,397 shares of company stock valued at $6,763,814. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE:NUE traded up $1.94 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $143.82. The company had a trading volume of 1,515,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,261,052. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $143.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.42. Nucor Corporation has a one year low of $97.59 and a one year high of $170.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.01 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.76.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $8.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.47 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 4.21% and a return on equity of 6.65%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Nucor Corporation will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.71%.

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.