Community Bank N.A. Reduces Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Community Bank N.A. cut its holdings in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,452 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,721 shares during the quarter. Nucor makes up approximately 0.8% of Community Bank N.A.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Community Bank N.A.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $6,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. SVB Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Nucor by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 3,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $636,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC raised its holdings in Nucor by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 220 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its holdings in Nucor by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 822 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in Nucor by 1.7% in the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 4,168 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $652,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Nucor by 3.5% in the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,066 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total transaction of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total transaction of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,153.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total value of $1,025,035.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,902,206.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,151 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,683. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on NUE. Citigroup upgraded Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group initiated coverage on Nucor in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Nucor from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $193.14.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE traded down $1.88 on Wednesday, hitting $172.76. 2,586,233 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,441,052. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $191.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.17. The firm has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 1.61. Nucor Co. has a one year low of $129.79 and a one year high of $203.00. 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 (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by ($0.16). Nucor had a return on equity of 19.67% and a net margin of 12.40%. The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.45 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Nucor Co. will post 12.93 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.71%.

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.