Ritholtz Wealth Management Trims Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Ritholtz Wealth Management reduced its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 24.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,209 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,032 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Nucor were worth $482,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NUE. CX Institutional boosted its position in Nucor by 52.8% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 17,245 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,726,000 after buying an additional 5,960 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,847,000. Banco Santander S.A. grew its stake in Nucor by 86.2% in the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 12,895 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,552,000 after purchasing an additional 5,971 shares in the last quarter. Ascension Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth $885,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new position in Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth $6,655,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $151.62 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $146.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $161.11. The company has a market cap of $36.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Nucor Co. has a twelve month low of $133.42 and a twelve month high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $5.81 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 9.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. Nucor’s payout ratio is 12.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on 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 shares of Nucor from $174.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Nucor from $176.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Argus upgraded shares of Nucor to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 8,624 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $1,379,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,847,840. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.46% 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.