Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target Raised to $285.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets raised Nucor’s price target from $250 to $285 and kept an outperform rating, implying about 9.76% upside from the current price.
• Nucor stock traded up to $259.65, near its 52-week high, while analysts overall maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $251.67.
• The company recently reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.23 beating estimates and revenue of $9.50 billion topping expectations; it also has a $4 billion share repurchase authorization in place.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets from $250.00 to $285.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the basic materials company's stock. BMO Capital Markets' target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.76% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Nucor from $180.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Nucor from $213.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Nucor from $180.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Nucor from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Argus boosted their price target on shares of Nucor from $200.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $251.67.

Nucor Stock Up 0.5%

Nucor stock traded up $1.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $259.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 262,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,619,268. Nucor has a 52-week low of $115.66 and a 52-week high of $260.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.71, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.90 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $205.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.04.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $9.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.88 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.68%. Nucor's revenue was up 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Nucor will post 14.84 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Activity at Nucor

In other news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 4,554 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.86, for a total value of $1,028,566.44. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,802,127.24. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradley Ford sold 2,240 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.13, for a total value of $519,971.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 43,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,132,242.37. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 71,818 shares of company stock valued at $16,234,593 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Nucor by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,407,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,633,554,000 after acquiring an additional 144,038 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Nucor by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,853,205 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $628,497,000 after purchasing an additional 41,728 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth about $609,002,000. Capital World Investors grew its holdings 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 valued at $412,081,000 after purchasing an additional 509,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Nucor by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,539,044 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $429,298,000 after buying an additional 22,718 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

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.

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