Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV Has $6.40 Million Stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV decreased its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,333 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,080 shares during the quarter. Nucor comprises approximately 0.7% of Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Nucor were worth $6,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Nucor during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Tompkins Financial Corp grew its position in Nucor by 208.0% during the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in Nucor by 54.1% during the first quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 168 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its position in Nucor by 716.7% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Nucor from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, May 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nucor has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.67.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE NUE traded up $0.47 on Wednesday, hitting $156.93. 264,522 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,461,734. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $165.40 and a 200-day moving average of $177.66. The company has a current ratio of 4.02, a quick ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $140.07 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The stock has a market cap of $37.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 1.57.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by ($0.16). Nucor had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 19.62%. The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Nucor’s payout ratio is 12.71%.

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.