Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Acquires New Holdings in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,289 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,647,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 19.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,332,431,000 after purchasing an additional 884,580 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 4,590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 13,450 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,368,000 after buying an additional 2,388 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 78,541 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $19,669,000 after buying an additional 30,762 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the third quarter valued at about $242,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Down 0.9 %

VMC stock opened at $228.56 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $249.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.44. The company has a market cap of $30.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 1.83. Vulcan Materials has a fifty-two week low of $215.08 and a fifty-two week high of $298.31.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.41. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group lowered Vulcan Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $343.00 to $258.00 in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $298.00.

Vulcan Materials Company 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.