Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 33,991 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 85.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,868 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 33,991 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Nucor were worth $685,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Nucor Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NUE traded up $0.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $109.30. 3,371,202 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,146,528. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $97.59 and a 52 week high of $170.52. The company has a market cap of $25.22 billion, a PE ratio of 13.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.76.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its 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 business had revenue of $7.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.25 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.46 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Nucor from $156.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Nucor from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Argus set a $155.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.89.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 34,238 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 162,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,590,128.67. This trade represents a 17.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible 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.