JPMorgan Chase & Co. Initiates Coverage on Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) in a research note released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $480.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on VMI. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Valmont Industries from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Valmont Industries from $345.00 to $382.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $420.67.

Valmont Industries Trading Up 5.7%

Shares of VMI stock opened at $385.54 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $369.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $331.37. Valmont Industries has a twelve month low of $250.07 and a twelve month high of $388.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.90 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.78 by $0.10. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 22.10% and a net margin of 5.98%.The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Valmont Industries has set its FY 2025 guidance at 17.500-19.500 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Valmont Industries will post 18.07 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be paid a $0.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is 25.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valmont Industries

In related news, CAO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,867 shares of Valmont Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total value of $1,027,876.84. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,746 shares in the company, valued at $3,494,135.92. The trade was a 22.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valmont Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VMI. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the first quarter worth $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Valmont Industries by 87.7% during the first quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 107 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in Valmont Industries by 93.9% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 128 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Valmont Industries by 223.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the second quarter worth $46,000. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.