Global Financial Private Client LLC Sells 5,754 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Global Financial Private Client LLC lessened its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 90.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 637 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 5,754 shares during the period. Global Financial Private Client LLC's holdings in Nucor were worth $74,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter worth approximately $163,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its stake in Nucor by 47.2% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 758 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,872,000. Eastern Bank lifted its stake in Nucor by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 2,283 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Nucor by 339.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,157 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $719,000 after purchasing an additional 4,755 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $125.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $165.63.

Nucor Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE NUE traded up $1.33 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $123.08. 2,053,582 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,419,382. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $135.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.61. Nucor Co. has a 12-month low of $112.25 and a 12-month high of $203.00. The firm has a market cap of $28.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.89 and a beta of 1.60.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 12.06%. Nucor's revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 8.48 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This is an increase from Nucor's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.26%.

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.