Nucor (NYSE: NUE) reported earnings on Oct. 18. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 29 (Q3), Nucor met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue contracted and GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.

Margins contracted across the board.

Revenue details
 Nucor notched revenue of $4.80 billion. The 15 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see net sales of $4.85 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 8.6% lower than the prior-year quarter's $5.25 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $0.45. The 17 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.42 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.35 for Q3 were 39% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.57 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 7.3%, 180 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 4.9%, 150 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 2.3%, 120 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $4.69 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.41.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $19.70 billion. The average EPS estimate is $1.73.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 2,128 members out of 2,212 rating the stock outperform, and 84 members rating it underperform. Among 532 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 513 give Nucor a green thumbs-up, and 19 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Nucor is outperform, with an average price target of $45.59.

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