Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Shares Bought by Empirical Finance LLC

Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,677 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $1,091,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $380,369,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 239.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 739,003 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $190,094,000 after acquiring an additional 521,508 shares in the last quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $329,769,000 after acquiring an additional 450,000 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,507,892 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,518,291,000 after acquiring an additional 445,691 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 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. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock opened at $274.90 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.31 billion, a PE ratio of 38.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.82. Vulcan Materials Company has a twelve month low of $215.08 and a twelve month high of $298.31. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $265.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $257.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.80%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $405,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $764,640. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VMC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $273.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Loop Capital lowered 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 note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.91.

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.