Nucor (NUE) closed at $258.46 in the latest trading session, marking a +2.77% move from the prior day. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.13% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.45%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.03%.
Coming into today, shares of the steel company had gained 11.37% in the past month. In that same time, the Basic Materials sector gained 3.24%, while the S&P 500 gained 5.25%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Nucor in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $4.42, indicating a 70% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $9.76 billion, up 15.37% from the prior-year quarter.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $14.84 per share and a revenue of $37.05 billion, signifying shifts of +92.48% and +14.01%, respectively, from the last year.
Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Nucor. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 8.82% higher. Nucor currently has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).
In terms of valuation, Nucor is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 16.95. This denotes a premium relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 15.87.
Also, we should mention that NUE has a PEG ratio of 0.67. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Steel - Producers industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.57 as trading concluded yesterday.
The Steel - Producers industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 80, this industry ranks in the top 33% of all industries, numbering over 250.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
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Nucor Corporation (NUE): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).