Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 5,956 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $717,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Canal Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Nucor by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC now owns 3,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Nucor by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,657 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,111,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc raised its stake in Nucor by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc now owns 10,528 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Nucor by 29.1% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diligent Investors LLC grew its holdings in Nucor by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 2,296 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE stock traded up $3.39 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $121.84. The company had a trading volume of 3,303,641 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,212,097. Nucor Co. has a 12 month low of $97.59 and a 12 month high of $170.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.68. The firm's fifty day moving average is $115.00 and its 200 day moving average is $123.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.15). The company 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 for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.46 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NUE shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Nucor from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Argus set a $155.00 target price on Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Nucor from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price target on Nucor in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $157.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 34,238 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.19, for a total value of $4,115,065.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 162,993 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,590,128.67. The trade was a 17.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is 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.