Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Lowers Stock Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 20.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 95,786 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 24,770 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Nucor were worth $11,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NUE. State Street Corp grew its position in Nucor by 2.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,427,899 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,724,117,000 after buying an additional 326,181 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew 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 valued at $883,732,000 after acquiring an additional 74,569 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Nucor by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,456,484 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $519,648,000 after purchasing an additional 571,682 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Nucor by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,758,753 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $205,282,000 after purchasing an additional 358,721 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Nucor by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,680,468 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $196,127,000 after purchasing an additional 68,252 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

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Nucor Price Performance

Shares of Nucor stock traded up $2.17 on Friday, hitting $131.73. 1,112,998 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,807,801. Nucor Co. has a 1-year low of $112.25 and a 1-year high of $203.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $129.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.69. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 period last year, the company earned $3.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $156.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Nucor from $154.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Nucor from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.33.

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.