Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Nucor (NYSE:NUE)

Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 36,790 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 442% compared to the average daily volume of 6,787 put options.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NUE traded down $2.23 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $114.48. The company had a trading volume of 1,382,319 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,628,358. The stock has a market cap of $26.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 1.55. The company's 50 day moving average price is $139.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Nucor has a 52-week low of $113.94 and a 52-week high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.57 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 8.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given 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 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NUE has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $156.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $173.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 4,712 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 11,000 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.11, for a total transaction of $1,860,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 172,136 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,109,918.96. The trade was a 6.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,680 shares of company stock worth $4,773,724. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 45.6% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Nucor by 769.2% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.