Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Shares Acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. raised its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 300.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $467,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its stake in Nucor by 45.6% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Nucor by 60.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE:NUE opened at $124.95 on Wednesday. Nucor Co. has a 1 year low of $112.25 and a 1 year high of $203.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $132.82 and a 200-day moving average of $144.17.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.28 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. The company’s revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 8.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 98,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,499,436. The trade was a 8.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 85,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,636,254.72. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,680 shares of company stock worth $4,773,724. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NUE. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Nucor in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Nucor from $168.00 to $152.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.63.

Nucor Company 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.