Simmons Bank Trims Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Simmons Bank decreased its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,080 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Nucor were worth $1,176,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp increased its stake in Nucor by 2.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,427,899 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,724,117,000 after purchasing an additional 326,181 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nucor by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,861,945 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $883,732,000 after acquiring an additional 74,569 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Nucor by 19.8% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,456,484 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $519,648,000 after acquiring an additional 571,682 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Nucor by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,758,753 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $205,282,000 after acquiring an additional 358,721 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Nucor by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,679,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $195,977,000 after acquiring an additional 104,238 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Trading Down 1.2 %

Nucor stock opened at $134.41 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Nucor Co. has a 12 month low of $112.25 and a 12 month high of $203.00. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $126.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $139.61. The firm has a market cap of $31.56 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 last year, the firm posted $3.16 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on NUE. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com upgraded Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 target price (down from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.13.

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.