Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 231,471 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 26,607 shares during the quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC owned 0.10% of Nucor worth $27,855,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Nucor stock traded down $2.14 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $119.72. 1,123,692 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,716,231. Nucor Co. has a 1 year low of $97.59 and a 1 year high of $170.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $113.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.21.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $7.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.25 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The firm's revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $156.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Argus set a $155.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Nucor from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a research report on Monday, March 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $157.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 34,238 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 owns 162,993 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,590,128.67. This represents a 17.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nucor Company 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.