Key Points
- EVP Bradley Ford sold 2,240 Nucor shares on May 5 at an average price of $232.13 for $519,971.20, trimming his position by 4.88% to 43,649 shares; the sale was disclosed in an SEC Form 4 filing.
- Nucor posted a Q1 beat with $3.23 EPS (vs. $2.82 est.) and revenue of $9.50B (up 21.3% YoY), while the board authorized a $4.0 billion share buyback and declared a $0.56 quarterly dividend.
- Analysts have raised targets and the consensus price objective is about $243.80, but a cluster of insider sales has generated negative headlines and likely contributed to recent intra‑day selling pressure.
Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) EVP Bradley Ford sold 2,240 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.13, for a total value of $519,971.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 43,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,132,242.37. This trade represents a 4.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.
Nucor Trading Down 3.3%
NYSE:NUE opened at $226.60 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $184.10 and its 200-day moving average is $171.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Nucor Corporation has a 12 month low of $106.21 and a 12 month high of $235.44. The firm has a market cap of $51.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.87.
Nucor (NYSE:NUE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.41. Nucor had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The business had revenue of $9.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.88 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. Nucor's revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Nucor Corporation will post 13.64 EPS for the current year.
Nucor announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the basic materials company to purchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Nucor Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Nucor's dividend payout ratio is 22.18%.
Nucor News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Nucor this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and revenue strength — Nucor posted an EPS beat and ~21% YoY revenue growth, which improves near‑term earnings visibility and supports higher analyst targets.
- Positive Sentiment: Share repurchase and dividend — the board authorized a $4.0B buyback (~9.7% of shares) and maintains a quarterly dividend ($0.56), both shareholder‑friendly moves that can sustain buy‑side interest. Buyback article
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst momentum — multiple brokers have raised price targets (consensus target ~$243.80), which supports upside expectations despite the rally. BNP Paribas raises price target
- Neutral Sentiment: Solid fundamentals & institutional ownership — modest leverage (D/E ~0.30), healthy liquidity and ~76% institutional ownership reduce the odds of a prolonged sell‑off, though they also limit dramatic volatility in either direction.
- Negative Sentiment: Cluster of insider sales — several executives have sold sizeable positions in early May (including EVP David Sumoski, Daniel Needham, Noah Hanners, Allen Behr, Michael Keller). The concentration of sales is fueling headlines and likely prompted some intra‑day selling pressure. See SEC filing for Sumoski. Form 4 — Sumoski
- Negative Sentiment: Broader insider‑selling coverage — multiple outlets note the wave of insider trimming, which can be interpreted as executives locking gains after the steep one‑year rally. TipRanks — insider sales summary InsiderTrades — Keller sale
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NUE shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Nucor from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their target price on Nucor from $210.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised Nucor from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Nucor from $213.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Nucor from $212.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $243.80.
Get Our Latest Analysis on NUE
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Nucor by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,407,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,633,554,000 after buying an additional 144,038 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Nucor by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,853,205 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $628,497,000 after acquiring an additional 41,728 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $609,002,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Nucor by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,042,761 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $412,081,000 after acquiring an additional 509,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Nucor by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,539,044 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $429,298,000 after acquiring an additional 22,718 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company's stock.
About Nucor
(
Get Free Report)
Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor's operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.
Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value‑added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.
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