Swedbank AB Trims Stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Swedbank AB trimmed its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 184,181 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,778 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.08% of Nucor worth $29,115,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Nucor during the 4th quarter worth about $377,631,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,499,893 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $261,041,000 after buying an additional 36,304 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,367,209 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $237,949,000 after buying an additional 85,475 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Nucor by 6.5% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,165,094 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $230,572,000 after purchasing an additional 70,917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Nucor by 23.5% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 804,150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $159,141,000 after buying an additional 153,077 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 8,624 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $1,379,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,847,840. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NUE traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $145.23. The stock had a trading volume of 880,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,479,076. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $34.82 billion, a PE ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 1.57. Nucor Co. has a 1 year low of $139.41 and a 1 year high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.37. Nucor had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 10.45%. The firm had revenue of $8.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 10.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on NUE shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Nucor from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, May 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Nucor from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $187.00 to $176.00 in a report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $194.43.

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.