OFI Invest Asset Management Purchases New Shares in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 229,850 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,906,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NUE. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in Nucor in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 60.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 price target (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Nucor from $154.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.75.

Nucor Trading Up 1.4 %

NUE opened at $133.79 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $139.12. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.16 EPS. Analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. Nucor’s payout ratio is 26.16%.

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.