Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Stock Holdings Decreased by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lowered its stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 36.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 810,965 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 472,146 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Nucor were worth $94,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NUE. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew 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 during the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Nucor by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Nucor in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price 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. Finally, Argus set a $155.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.33.

Nucor Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:NUE opened at $129.73 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $130.10 and a 200-day moving average of $138.11. The firm has a market cap of $29.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. Nucor Co. has a twelve month low of $112.25 and a twelve month high of $203.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 last year, the company posted $3.16 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

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.