Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Trims Stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich cut its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 15.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 265 shares during the quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings in Nucor were worth $253,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NUE. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter worth $108,747,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Nucor by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,070,960 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $360,430,000 after acquiring an additional 237,752 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Nucor by 7.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,262,832 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $353,794,000 after acquiring an additional 159,230 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Nucor by 3.7% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,175,571 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $652,851,000 after acquiring an additional 149,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Nucor by 23.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 680,506 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $106,395,000 after acquiring an additional 128,536 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

Nucor stock opened at $175.42 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $190.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $174.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.10 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 4.02, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Nucor Co. has a 12-month low of $129.79 and a 12-month high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.62 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 12.40%. Nucor’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 12.5 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be issued a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on NUE. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Citigroup raised shares of Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Nucor from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $193.14.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In other news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.19, for a total value of $1,901,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,386,751.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total transaction of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,153.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,151 shares of company stock worth $7,308,683. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.