Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 16.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 243,131 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 48,041 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.10% of Nucor worth $28,365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at $565,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Nucor by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,861,945 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $883,732,000 after acquiring an additional 74,569 shares in the last quarter. InvesTrust purchased a new stake in Nucor during the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,388,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Nucor by 15.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 249,984 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,583,000 after purchasing an additional 34,149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR increased its stake in Nucor by 38.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 8,455 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $987,000 after purchasing an additional 2,327 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Nucor stock traded up $1.98 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $113.22. 336,241 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,908,071. The stock has a market cap of $26.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.67. The firm's 50 day moving average is $127.54 and its 200 day moving average is $134.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $97.59 and a 52-week high of $197.79.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Nucor's payout ratio is currently 26.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NUE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Argus set a $155.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 target price on Nucor in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Nucor has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $162.11.

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.