Nucor Corporation $NUE Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Key Points

• Arizona State Retirement System trimmed its stake in Nucor by 7.6% in Q4, selling 5,144 shares and leaving it with 62,975 shares valued at about $10.27 million; institutional investors now own roughly 76.48% of the company.
• Company insiders have been net sellers — EVPs Daniel R. Needham and Kenneth Rex Query sold 3,881 and 7,452 shares respectively, and insiders disposed of 26,401 shares (~$4.94 million) in the past three months, leaving insiders with about 0.62% ownership.
• Nucor approved a $4.0 billion share buyback (up to 9.7% of outstanding shares) and declared a $0.56 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.24, ~1.0% yield), even as last quarter's EPS of $1.73 and $7.69 billion revenue missed analyst estimates.

Arizona State Retirement System lowered its position in shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 62,975 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,144 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Nucor were worth $10,272,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NUE. Stance Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Nucor during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 281.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC now owns 271 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 81.8% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 340 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 3,881 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $690,818.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 88,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,717,044. This trade represents a 4.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total transaction of $1,460,741.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,020,620.56. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 26,401 shares of company stock valued at $4,936,152. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Nucor Price Performance

Nucor stock opened at $214.63 on Friday. Nucor Corporation has a 52-week low of $106.21 and a 52-week high of $216.26. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $177.78 and a 200-day moving average of $166.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.46, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.18). Nucor had a return on equity of 8.26% and a net margin of 5.37%.The business had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 EPS. Nucor's revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Nucor Corporation will post 12.18 EPS for the current year.

Nucor declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to purchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NUE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Seaport Research Partners upped their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They set a "sector weight" rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nucor from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $198.10.

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.

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.