OLD Republic International Corp Has $54.34 Million Stock Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

OLD Republic International Corp decreased its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 13.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 312,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 50,000 shares during the period. Nucor makes up about 2.0% of OLD Republic International Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. OLD Republic International Corp owned about 0.13% of Nucor worth $54,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Keybank National Association OH increased its position in shares of Nucor by 3.4% during the 3rd 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 position in Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at $3,481,000. AIA Group Ltd lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 4,592 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,230,000. Finally, abrdn plc increased its stake in shares of Nucor by 41.7% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 154,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,932,000 after purchasing an additional 45,521 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NUE traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $174.10. The stock had a trading volume of 354,274 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,423,504. The firm has a market cap of $41.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.26 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 4.02 and a quick ratio of 2.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $187.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $175.78. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $129.79 and a 52 week high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.62 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $8.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 19.62%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 12.55 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.71%.

Insider Activity

In other Nucor news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total value of $3,772,655.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 120,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total transaction of $3,772,655.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,386,751.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,651 shares of company stock worth $6,283,648. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NUE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Nucor from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup upgraded Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com lowered Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Nucor in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $193.14.

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.