Lake Street Advisors Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,851 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Nucor were worth $217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new stake in Nucor in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 114 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $137.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $126.86 and a 200 day moving average of $139.55. Nucor Co. has a twelve month low of $112.25 and a twelve month high of $203.00.

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

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on NUE shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.13.

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.