Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 429 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,521 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Nucor stock opened at $131.57 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $128.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.64 and a beta of 1.60. Nucor Co. has a 1-year low of $112.25 and a 1-year high of $203.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. This is an increase from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NUE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Nucor has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 4,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.53, for a total transaction of $798,825.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 82,132 shares in the company, valued at $13,923,837.96. This trade represents a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 172,136 shares in the company, valued at $29,109,918.96. The trade was a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,680 shares of company stock worth $3,452,524 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

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.