Nucor Announces 212th Dividend, New Buyback Program
Steel producer Nucor Corporation declared its 212th consecutive quarterly cash dividend of $0.56 per share. The dividend is payable on May 11, 2026, to stockholders of record on March 31, 2026. In addition to the dividend, the company's Board of Directors also authorized a new share repurchase program.
- Nucor has increased its base dividend for 53 consecutive years, classifying it as a "Dividend Aristocrat" and "Dividend King," a distinction held by S&P 500 companies with at least 25 years of consecutive dividend increases. - The new share repurchase program follows a previous $3 billion authorization from May 2021, which had replaced a $2 billion program from 2018. - In the full year 2025, Nucor returned approximately $1.2 billion to shareholders through a combination of share repurchases and dividend payments. - For the full year 2024, the company repurchased about 13.1 million shares and returned a total of approximately $2.74 billion to stockholders via buybacks and dividends. - The company's dividend payout ratio, the percentage of earnings paid to shareholders, is approximately 29-31%, suggesting earnings cover the dividend payments comfortably. - Nucor's full-year 2024 net earnings were $2.03 billion, a decrease from the $4.53 billion reported in 2023. - The company maintains the strongest credit ratings in the North American steel sector, with stable outlooks from Moody's (Baa1), Standard & Poor's (A-), and Fitch Ratings (A-). - As of the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, Nucor had $2.70 billion in cash and cash equivalents on hand and a $2.25 billion revolving credit facility that remains undrawn.
