American Trust Sells 84 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

American Trust lessened its holdings in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE – Get Rating) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,980 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 84 shares during the period. American Trust’s holdings in Nucor were worth $211,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NUE. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the first quarter valued at $48,000. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 150.6% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 7,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 4,326 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 106.2% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,889 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,328,000 after acquiring an additional 18,488 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the first quarter valued at about $284,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the first quarter valued at about $222,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.33% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:NUE opened at $144.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a current ratio of 3.39. The company has a market cap of $36.31 billion, a PE ratio of 5.02 and a beta of 1.59. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $100.13 and a 52-week high of $187.90. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.07.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.54 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 42.03% and a net margin of 18.33%. Nucor’s quarterly revenue was down 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.97 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 30th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Nucor’s payout ratio is presently 7.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NUE shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Nucor from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 27th. UBS Group increased their target price on Nucor from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 6th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Nucor in a research note on Wednesday, January 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $172.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Nucor from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Nucor in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $153.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.36, for a total transaction of $841,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,137 shares in the company, valued at $10,293,025.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Nucor news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.36, for a total value of $841,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,137 shares in the company, valued at $10,293,025.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.71, for a total value of $404,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 126,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,082,440.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 12,575 shares of company stock worth $2,034,130. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Nucor Company Profile

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Nucor Corp. engages in the manufacturing of steel and steel products. It operates through the following segments: Steel Mills, Steel Products, and Raw Materials. The Steel Mills segment consists of carbon and alloy steel in sheet, bars, structural and plate, steel trading businesses, rebar distribution businesses, and Nucor’s equity method investments.