Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nucor (NYSE:NUE) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on NUE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Nucor from $308.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Zacks Research cut Nucor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Nucor from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Nucor from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $270.00 price target on Nucor in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.07.

Nucor Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NUE stock opened at $256.97 on Monday. Nucor has a fifty-two week low of $131.32 and a fifty-two week high of $280.11. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $254.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $237.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $4.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.38. Nucor had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 12.73%. The company had revenue of $10.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.60 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Nucor will post 19.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. Nucor’s payout ratio is 17.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Stephen D. Laxton sold 3,968 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.96, for a total transaction of $1,019,617.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,008,704.32. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total transaction of $1,044,080.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,212,340.76. This trade represents a 19.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Nucor in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new position in Nucor in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. GK Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Nucor in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Markowski Investments acquired a new stake in Nucor during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Nucor

Here are the key news stories impacting Nucor this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Utility-infrastructure expansion: Nucor will invest $105 million to expand its Nucor Towers & Structures facility in Crawfordsville, Indiana. The project adds more than 120,000 square feet of automated manufacturing capacity and 100 jobs, positioning the company to benefit from rising U.S. electricity-transmission and distribution demand. Nucor Indiana expansion article
• Positive Sentiment: Higher-value product mix: The investment could strengthen Nucor’s role in utility poles and related structural products, potentially diversifying revenue beyond conventional steel and improving its exposure to long-term grid-modernization spending. Nucor utility pole expansion article
• Positive Sentiment: Upward earnings revisions: Zacks Research raised its Q4 2026 EPS estimate to $6.84 from $4.81 and its FY2027 estimate to $19.44 from $18.83. The firm maintained a Hold rating, but the revisions suggest improving earnings expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Strong investor momentum: NUE was included in Zacks’ Rank #1 (Strong Buy) momentum and value-stock lists for October 14, reinforcing the stock’s recent performance and valuation appeal. Zacks momentum stocks list
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming results: Nucor invited investors to its third-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. The event could provide updated guidance on steel demand, margins and whether the Indiana expansion is translating into broader earnings growth. Nucor third-quarter earnings call announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed forecast signals: Zacks lowered several Q3 2026 and Q3 2027 EPS estimates, including Q3 2026 to $5.61 from $5.90, indicating near-term earnings uncertainty despite longer-term upward revisions.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation is a Charlotte, North Carolina-based steel producer and one of the largest steel companies in North America. The company operates electric arc furnace (EAF) steel mills that use recycled scrap steel as a primary raw material, along with facilities that manufacture and process steel products for construction, manufacturing, transportation, energy and other industrial markets.

Nucor’s product portfolio includes carbon and alloy steel in sheet, plate, bar and structural forms, as well as reinforcing steel, wire and wire mesh.