North Dakota State Investment Board Makes New $1.29 Million Investment in Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Nucor, buying 7,877 shares worth about $1.29 million in the fourth quarter.
• Nucor posted a strong quarterly beat, reporting $3.23 EPS versus the $2.82 estimate and $9.50 billion in revenue, up 21.3% year over year.
• The company also continues returning capital to shareholders with a $4 billion buyback authorization and a quarterly dividend of $0.56 per share, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with a $245.45 price target.

North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Nucor by 580.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 653,845 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $84,699,000 after purchasing an additional 557,819 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Nucor by 20.1% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,042,761 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $412,081,000 after purchasing an additional 509,019 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its position in Nucor by 169.0% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 779,940 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $127,216,000 after purchasing an additional 489,950 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Nucor by 494.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 434,511 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $70,873,000 after purchasing an additional 361,417 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Nucor by 146.9% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 548,911 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $74,339,000 after acquiring an additional 326,572 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 12,888 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.00, for a total value of $2,912,688.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Noah C. Hanners sold 6,472 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 50,377 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,410,390.50. The trade was a 11.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 69,318 shares of company stock valued at $15,672,093 in the last quarter. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nucor Stock Down 2.1%

NYSE NUE opened at $221.66 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.90. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.12. Nucor Corporation has a twelve month low of $106.21 and a twelve month high of $235.45. The stock has a market cap of $50.48 billion, a PE ratio of 21.95, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.87.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.41. Nucor had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The business had revenue of $9.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.77 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Nucor Corporation will post 14.58 EPS for the current year.

Nucor declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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 buy up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NUE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Nucor from $213.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group cut shares of Nucor from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $190.00 to $224.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Nucor from $180.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Nucor from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $245.45.

Nucor Company 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.