Vestcor Inc Has $983,000 Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Vestcor Inc lessened its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 39.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,544 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Nucor were worth $983,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its position in Nucor by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,427,899 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,724,117,000 after acquiring an additional 326,181 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth approximately $565,000. BIP Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Nucor during the third quarter valued at approximately $681,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Nucor by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,861,945 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $883,732,000 after buying an additional 74,569 shares during the period. Finally, InvesTrust purchased a new stake in Nucor in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,388,000. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Stock Up 2.1 %

NUE stock opened at $132.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The company has a 50-day moving average of $129.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $138.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $112.25 and a 52-week high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.16 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is 26.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Nucor from $154.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 price objective (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $164.33.

Nucor Profile

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.