Freedom Broker cuts Nucor to Hold with a $285 target

On September 17, Freedom Broker downgraded Nucor from Buy to Hold and lowered its price target from $305 to $285. The decision followed Nucor's third-quarter 2026 earnings guidance of $5.55 to $5.65 per diluted share. While the midpoint of $5.60 per share is up 113% from the $2.63 reported in the third quarter of 2025, it trailed Freedom Broker's previous forecast of $7.54 and consensus Wall Street expectations of $5.99 to $6.20 per share.

Freedom Broker analyst Vitaly Kononov noted that the market may have overreacted to the softer forecast and expects earlier positive momentum to continue, even as the guidance puts near-term pressure on the stock. Operations showed volume growth in the second quarter of 2026, when steel mill shipments rose 1% sequentially to a record 7.1 million tons, while the tube business also achieved record quarterly shipments.

Nucor reported that it returned roughly $1.36 billion to shareholders through repurchases and dividends year-to-date through September 17. As of August 31, short interest stood at 2.40% of the float. The stock trades at a forward price-to-earnings multiple of 11.51. Across Wall Street, 74% of the 19 covering analysts rated the shares a Buy, with a median 12-month target of $295 representing roughly 19% upside as of September 18.