United Capital Management of KS Inc. Takes $9.69 Million Position in Nucor Corporation $NUE

Key Points

• United Capital Management of KS Inc. has purchased 80,534 shares of Nucor Corporation, valued at approximately $9.69 million, making it the 15th largest position in their investment portfolio.
• Nucor recently reported earnings of $2.60 per share, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $8.46 billion, indicating a 4.7% growth compared to the previous year's quarter.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.55, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.5%, and currently has a dividend payout ratio of 39.71%.

United Capital Management of KS Inc. acquired a new position in Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 80,534 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $9,691,000. Nucor makes up about 2.0% of United Capital Management of KS Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Nucor by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 349,821 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $42,098,000 after purchasing an additional 45,147 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. raised its stake in Nucor by 36.0% in the 1st quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 13,929 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,687 shares during the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc raised its stake in Nucor by 69.5% in the 1st quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 126,801 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $15,027,000 after purchasing an additional 51,984 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC raised its stake in Nucor by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 4,096 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $493,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. raised its stake in Nucor by 236.4% in the 1st quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 10,047 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 7,060 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NUE has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Nucor from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $134.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Nucor from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $155.78.

Nucor Trading Up 0.9%

NUE traded up $1.26 on Tuesday, reaching $145.91. 1,381,251 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,472,021. The company's 50 day moving average is $136.22 and its 200-day moving average is $127.02. The company has a market cap of $33.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.34, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.74. Nucor Corporation has a twelve month low of $97.59 and a twelve month high of $170.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.83.

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

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nucor news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.37, for a total value of $1,303,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 94,080 shares in the company, valued at $12,265,209.60. This represents a 9.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 7,088 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.87, for a total value of $906,342.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 99,379 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,707,592.73. This represents a 6.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 25,109 shares of company stock worth $3,360,094 in the last 90 days. 0.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Nucor 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.