State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. Sells 65,505 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. lowered its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 24,496,294 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 65,505 shares during the period. Nucor comprises about 2.6% of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. owned 0.10% of Nucor worth $2,858,962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Nucor by 60.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Nucor by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE stock opened at $121.90 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $130.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $137.29. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $112.25 and a 52-week high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period last year, the business earned $3.16 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is 26.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NUE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup cut their price objective on Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Argus set a $155.00 target price on Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $164.44.

Nucor 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.