Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Nucor has been upgraded to a "hold" rating by Wells Fargo & Company, reflecting a shift in analyst sentiment regarding the stock.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Nucor's future, with Morgan Stanley raising its price target from $134 to $149 and UBS lowering theirs from $153 to $147, while the overall consensus rating stands at "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $155.78.
• Nucor reported $2.60 earnings per share for the last quarter, slightly beating analysts' expectations, with year-over-year revenue up 4.7%.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Nucor from $134.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Nucor from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Nucor from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $155.78.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of Nucor stock traded up $1.26 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $145.91. 1,381,548 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,472,021. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $136.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.74. Nucor has a one year low of $97.59 and a one year high of $170.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The basic materials company reported $2.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.54 by $0.06. Nucor had a return on equity of 6.65% and a net margin of 4.21%.The business had revenue of $8.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Nucor will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nucor news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 10,000 shares of Nucor 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 94,080 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,265,209.60. The trade was a 9.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 8,021 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.38, for a total value of $1,150,050.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 82,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,857,956.14. The trade was a 8.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,109 shares of company stock valued at $3,360,094 in the last quarter. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Nucor by 51.4% during the 2nd quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. now owns 221 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co increased its position in shares of Nucor by 53.8% during the 2nd quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 240 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Nucor by 73.5% during the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

About Nucor

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.