LPL Financial LLC Sells 43,581 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

LPL Financial LLC lessened its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 15.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 245,703 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 43,581 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Nucor worth $28,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Widmann Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Nucor by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,800 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Nucor by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,157 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Jessup Wealth Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc now owns 10,528 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 1.0% during the third quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 9,092 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.

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Nucor Stock Down 10.6 %

Shares of NUE traded down $13.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $109.96. 4,245,461 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,995,448. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $109.54 and a twelve month high of $203.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $130.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.67. The stock has a market cap of $25.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 posted $3.16 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus set a $155.00 price target on Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group raised shares of Nucor from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.44.

About Nucor

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.