JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target to $190.00

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its price objective cut by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $195.00 to $190.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 9.54% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also commented on NUE. Citigroup raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. UBS Group began coverage on Nucor in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $192.00.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NUE traded down $1.19 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $173.45. 956,167 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,419,586. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $191.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.18. The company has a market cap of $41.62 billion, a PE ratio of 10.22 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Nucor has a 12-month low of $129.79 and a 12-month high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.62 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.26 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 19.67% and a net margin of 12.40%. Nucor’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.45 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Nucor will post 12.93 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,386,751.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Nucor news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,386,751.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total transaction of $1,025,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,902,206.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,151 shares of company stock worth $7,308,683. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Keybank National Association OH lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 3.4% during the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 19,246 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,009,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new stake in Nucor during the fourth quarter worth about $3,481,000. AIA Group Ltd raised its stake in Nucor by 53.2% during the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 13,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,302,000 after acquiring an additional 4,592 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Nucor during the fourth quarter worth about $1,230,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Nucor by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

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.