Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Boosts Stake in Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments increased its stake in Nucor Corporation by 8.8%, now holding 34,386 shares valued at approximately $4.45 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several analysts have revised their price targets for Nucor, with Jefferies Financial Group raising its target from $135 to $170 and maintaining a "buy" rating.
• Nucor's latest quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, reporting $2.60 earnings per share and revenues of $8.46 billion, reflecting a 4.7% increase year-over-year.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 8.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,386 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,791 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Nucor were worth $4,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Matrix Trust Co increased its position in shares of Nucor by 53.8% in the second quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 240 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Nucor by 73.5% in the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Nucor by 81.8% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 340 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Spirit of America Management Corp NY purchased a new stake in Nucor in the 1st quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Nucor by 209.6% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 418 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Nucor from $182.00 to $173.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Nucor from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Nucor from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Nucor from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nucor has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $156.60.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE stock opened at $135.57 on Tuesday. Nucor Corporation has a 1 year low of $97.59 and a 1 year high of $170.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.12 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.75. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $141.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $129.09.

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

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Nucor's payout ratio is presently 39.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 8,021 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.38, for a total transaction of $1,150,050.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 82,703 shares in the company, valued at $11,857,956.14. This trade represents a 8.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 7,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total value of $1,051,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 92,179 shares in the company, valued at $13,458,134. This represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,309 shares of company stock worth $4,553,771. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

About Nucor

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.

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