Empower Advisory Group LLC Sells 31,819 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Empower Advisory Group LLC lessened its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 490,255 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 31,819 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Nucor worth $57,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NUE. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its holdings in Nucor by 45.6% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NUE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Nucor in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Nucor presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $163.13.

Nucor Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE:NUE traded down $4.77 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $135.19. 2,277,287 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,865,920. The firm has a market cap of $31.74 billion, a PE ratio of 16.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60. Nucor Co. has a fifty-two week low of $112.25 and a fifty-two week high of $203.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 in the prior year, the business posted $3.16 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor's payout ratio is 26.16%.

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.