Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. Trims Stock Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. decreased its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,424 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,486 shares during the quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $3,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NUE. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in Nucor by 8,530.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 1,595,179 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $239,819,000 after purchasing an additional 1,576,695 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,456,484 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $519,648,000 after purchasing an additional 571,682 shares during the period. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor during the third quarter worth $74,829,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Nucor by 25.6% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in Nucor by 2.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,427,899 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,724,117,000 after buying an additional 326,181 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NUE opened at $135.19 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $112.25 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the business posted $3.16 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is currently 26.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.13.

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.