The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target to $169.00

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its target price cut by The Goldman Sachs Group from $175.00 to $169.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

NUE has been the subject of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $156.00 to $160.00 in a report on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $164.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.11.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $115.47 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $128.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.11. Nucor has a 52-week low of $97.59 and a 52-week high of $199.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.62 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.67.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) 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 prior year, the business earned $3.16 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Nucor will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,967,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $701,255,000 after acquiring an additional 105,309 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Nucor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $398,077,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Nucor by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,435,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $284,220,000 after purchasing an additional 384,205 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Nucor by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,404,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $280,627,000 after buying an additional 474,274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Nucor by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,758,753 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $205,282,000 after buying an additional 358,721 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

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.