Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Invests $23.80 Million in Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Nucor, buying 145,919 shares valued at about $23.8 million, or roughly 0.06% of the company.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on Nucor, with firms including JPMorgan, BNP Paribas Exane, and Citigroup raising price targets; the stock now has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a target price of $247.50.
• Nucor reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting $3.23 EPS on $9.50 billion in revenue, while also authorizing a $4 billion share buyback plan.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 145,919 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $23,804,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. owned approximately 0.06% of Nucor at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth about $1,528,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 15,814.3% during the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 3,321 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Services grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 587,032.0% during the third quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 146,783 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $19,879,000 after buying an additional 146,758 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Nucor by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,103,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $342,642,000 after purchasing an additional 210,577 shares during the period. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,989,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Nucor from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, May 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. They issued a "sector weight" rating for the company. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Nucor from $180.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $247.50.

Nucor Price Performance

Nucor stock opened at $250.06 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $56.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.90. Nucor Corporation has a 1 year low of $106.21 and a 1 year high of $251.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $204.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.02.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $9.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.88 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.68%. Nucor's revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Nucor Corporation will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, February 20th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Nucor news, EVP Noah C. Hanners sold 6,472 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.50, for a total transaction of $1,465,908.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 50,377 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,410,390.50. The trade was a 11.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 12,888 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.00, for a total transaction of $2,912,688.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 89,724 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,277,624. This trade represents a 12.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 71,818 shares of company stock valued at $16,234,593 over the last quarter. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Nucor Profile

Nucor Corporation NYSE: NUE is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor's operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.

Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value‑added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NUE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report).

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.