Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 8.0% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 703,593 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 61,386 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $139,241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the first quarter worth $27,000. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 208.0% in the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 54.1% in the first quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 168 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 716.7% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NUE traded up $0.14 on Wednesday, reaching $156.60. 235,762 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,461,508. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $165.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $177.66. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $140.07 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 4.02, a quick ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by ($0.16). Nucor had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 19.62%. The company had revenue of $8.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.45 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 10.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NUE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, May 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com cut Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Bank of America reduced their target price on Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $189.67.

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.