Vulcan Materials Company $VMC Shares Purchased by Silvant Capital Management LLC

Silvant Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 0.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 105,877 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 149 shares during the quarter. Vulcan Materials makes up 1.1% of Silvant Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Silvant Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $24,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 2.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,699,662 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,896,031,000 after buying an additional 347,155 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 5.6% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,967,777 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,625,583,000 after buying an additional 370,434 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,507,892 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,518,291,000 after buying an additional 445,691 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,746,482 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $449,248,000 after buying an additional 177,918 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 54.1% during the fourth quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $329,769,000 after buying an additional 450,000 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

VMC opened at $291.44 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $38.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.70, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.83. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $298.31. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $273.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $259.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.65 by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.23 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.35 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on VMC shares. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $303.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $286.00 to $279.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $308.36.

About Vulcan Materials

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.