ING Groep NV Purchases 59,704 Shares of Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• ING Groep NV increased its Nucor stake by 201.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 59,704 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 89,377 shares worth about $14.6 million.
• Institutional activity and insider selling were notable: several other funds added to or opened positions in Nucor, while insiders sold 82,378 shares over the last three months, including EVP John J. Hollatz and EVP Allen C. Behr.
• Nucor’s fundamentals and outlook remain strong, with the company beating quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, and analysts maintaining a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $255.67.

ING Groep NV lifted its position in Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 201.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 89,377 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 59,704 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Nucor were worth $14,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in Nucor during the third quarter valued at $1,528,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its position in 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 valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 3,321 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Nucor by 11.1% during 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 buying an additional 210,577 shares during the period. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at $1,989,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Nucor by 745.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 83,463 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $13,614,000 after buying an additional 73,588 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John J. Hollatz sold 10,560 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.46, for a total value of $2,729,337.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 97,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,294,187.90. This trade represents a 9.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,096 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.08, for a total value of $2,282,503.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 62,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,213,875.68. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 82,378 shares of company stock worth $18,963,930 in the last three months. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Nucor from $180.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They set a "sector weight" rating for the company. UBS Group lowered Nucor from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $224.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Citigroup raised their price target on Nucor from $180.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Nucor from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $255.67.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $254.14 on Monday. Nucor Corporation has a one year low of $115.66 and a one year high of $264.67. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $213.65 and a 200 day moving average of $185.16. The company has a market capitalization of $57.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.88. 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 (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.41. Nucor had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 6.82%.The company had revenue of $9.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.88 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. Nucor's revenue for the quarter was up 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor Corporation will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

Nucor announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, February 20th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Nucor

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.

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