Swiss National Bank Grows Position in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Swiss National Bank lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 7.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 387,780 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,720 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $105,592,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NBT Bank N A NY purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC increased its position in Vulcan Materials by 56.4% during the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 122 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Vulcan Materials stock opened at $280.91 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.89. Vulcan Materials Company has a 12 month low of $252.35 and a 12 month high of $331.09. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $286.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $290.90. The company has a market cap of $36.45 billion, a PE ratio of 33.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.05.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.25. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 13.81%.The company had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $333.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $293.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Vulcan Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $327.79.

Insider Transactions at Vulcan Materials

In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,212 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.29, for a total value of $646,545.48. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,547,599.64. This represents a 20.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vulcan Materials Profile

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company’s primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.