5,851 Shares in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Acquired by Freestone Grove Partners LP

Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,851 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NUE. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $398,077,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Nucor by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,404,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $280,627,000 after acquiring an additional 474,274 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 528.6% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 507,715 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,235,000 after acquiring an additional 426,949 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,435,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $284,220,000 after purchasing an additional 384,205 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in 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 worth $205,282,000 after purchasing an additional 358,721 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $122.92 on Friday. Nucor Co. has a 12 month low of $97.59 and a 12 month high of $176.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $120.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $28.34 billion, a PE ratio of 14.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.67.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $7.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.25 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. Nucor’s revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.46 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Nucor’s payout ratio is currently 39.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on NUE shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus set a $155.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price objective on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, UBS Group raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Monday, March 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.33.

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.