Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 3,963 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 13.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,398 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,963 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in Nucor were worth $5,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NUE. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Nucor by 129.0% during the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 158 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Nucor during the third quarter worth $26,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 45.6% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In related news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total transaction of $793,488.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,636,254.72. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 4,712 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.53, for a total value of $798,825.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 82,132 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,923,837.96. The trade was a 5.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 29,680 shares of company stock worth $4,773,724. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NUE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Argus upgraded Nucor to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $190.50.

Nucor Stock Down 1.5 %

Nucor stock traded down $2.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $138.42. The stock had a trading volume of 2,081,818 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,566,551. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.50 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37 and a beta of 1.55. Nucor Co. has a fifty-two week low of $133.42 and a fifty-two week high of $203.00. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $150.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.59.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. Nucor had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.57 EPS. Nucor's quarterly revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.55 dividend. This is a boost from Nucor's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.87%.

Nucor Company 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.