Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Shares Sold by Quarry LP

Quarry LP trimmed its holdings in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 29.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 441 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 181 shares during the period. Quarry LP’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $113,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VMC. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $380,369,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 19.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,332,431,000 after buying an additional 884,580 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 28,529.4% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 523,631 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $134,694,000 after buying an additional 521,802 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 271.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 559,643 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $143,957,000 after acquiring an additional 408,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fernbridge Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth $79,227,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMC opened at $245.38 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $32.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. Vulcan Materials has a 1 year low of $215.08 and a 1 year high of $298.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $238.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $259.55.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VMC shares. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $287.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lowered shares of Vulcan Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $343.00 to $258.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $293.64.

Vulcan Materials Profile

Vulcan Materials Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies construction aggregates primarily in the United States. It operates through four segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The company provides crushed stones, sand and gravel, sand, and other aggregates; and related products and services that are applied in construction and maintenance of highways, streets, and other public works, as well as in the construction of housing and commercial, industrial, and other nonresidential facilities.