Delta Financial Advisors LLC Has $4.90 Million Stock Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Delta Financial Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,156 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,160 shares during the period. Nucor comprises about 2.1% of Delta Financial Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Delta Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Nucor were worth $4,900,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 15,470.4% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,204 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 4,177 shares in the last quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 716.7% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Nucor from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group started coverage on Nucor in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup upgraded Nucor from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $192.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value of $609,092.15. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 24,873 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value of $609,092.15. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 24,873 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total value of $1,025,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,902,206.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,151 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,683. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE:NUE traded down $2.01 on Thursday, hitting $190.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,051,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,375,576. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $191.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $173.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.72 and a beta of 1.61. Nucor Co. has a one year low of $129.79 and a one year high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported $3.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $7.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 13.03%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.89 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is 12.01%.

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.