Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Stake Lifted by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE - Free Report) by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,456,484 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 571,682 shares during the quarter. Nucor comprises approximately 1.1% of Pacer Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned about 1.47% of Nucor worth $519,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,786,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Nucor by 80.3% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 102,330 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $15,384,000 after buying an additional 45,569 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its stake in Nucor by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 55,512 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $8,346,000 after acquiring an additional 4,569 shares in the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in Nucor by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 10,672 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,604,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nucor by 26.9% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 6,600 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on NUE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Argus upgraded Nucor to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut 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. Three 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. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $190.57.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In related news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 98,770 shares in the company, valued at $14,499,436. This trade represents a 8.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,376 shares in the company, valued at $13,636,254.72. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,680 shares of company stock valued at $4,773,724 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NUE traded up $1.82 during trading on Thursday, hitting $149.99. 1,691,925 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,554,785. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $133.42 and a 52-week high of $203.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $149.32 and a 200 day moving average of $154.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The company has a market cap of $35.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 1.55.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $7.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.57 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 8.52 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.87%.

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.