Nucor (NUE) Laps the Stock Market: Here’s Why

Zacks Equity Research

Wed, Mar 12, 2025, 6:15 PM 3 min read

The latest trading session saw Nucor (NUE) ending at $130.86, denoting a +0.74% adjustment from its last day’s close. The stock outpaced the S&P 500’s daily gain of 0.49%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.2%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.22%.

Shares of the steel company have depreciated by 5.94% over the course of the past month, underperforming the Basic Materials sector’s loss of 2.81% and outperforming the S&P 500’s loss of 8.15%.

The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Nucor in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $1.19, showcasing a 65.61% downward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $7.21 billion, indicating a 11.43% decline compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.64 per share and a revenue of $30.31 billion, representing changes of -14.16% and -1.39%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Nucor. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company’s business and profitability.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.72% lower. Nucor is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Digging into valuation, Nucor currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 17. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 12.02 for its industry.

It is also worth noting that NUE currently has a PEG ratio of 0.89. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock’s expected earnings growth rate. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Steel – Producers industry held an average PEG ratio of 1.09.

The Steel – Producers industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 221, putting it in the bottom 12% of all 250+ industries.