Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Hits New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• 52-week high: Nucor shares reached a new 12‑month high intraday at $216.26 and last traded around $214.28 on volume of about 2.32 million shares.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with nine Buy and three Hold ratings, a consensus price target of $198.10 and an average rating of “Moderate Buy.”
• Nucor has authorized a $4.0 billion buyback (up to ~9.7% of shares) and declared a $0.56 quarterly dividend ($2.24 annualized, ~1.0% yield); however, it recently missed quarterly EPS ($1.73 vs. $1.91) despite revenue rising 8.6% year‑over‑year.

Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $216.26 and last traded at $214.2760, with a volume of 2319249 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $208.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on Nucor from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Nucor from $190.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Nucor from $197.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Seaport Research Partners upped their price target on Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $198.10.

Nucor Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $176.66 and a 200-day moving average of $165.53.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. Nucor's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Nucor Corporation will post 12.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.71%.

Nucor announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, February 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to repurchase up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nucor news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 7,568 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total value of $1,426,568.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 67,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,763,523.50. This trade represents a 10.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total value of $1,460,741.04. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares in the company, valued at $15,020,620.56. This represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 26,401 shares of company stock valued at $4,936,152 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter worth $609,002,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 580.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 20.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 169.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,780,423 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $290,405,000 after purchasing an additional 383,952 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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