Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC Takes $260,000 Position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,009 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $260,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VMC. Optimize Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $267,000. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 7,444 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 22,265 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,732,000 after acquiring an additional 6,010 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 24,465 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,293,000 after purchasing an additional 2,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,013,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock opened at $240.84 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $31.86 billion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $242.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $259.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Vulcan Materials has a 12-month low of $215.08 and a 12-month high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wolfe Research raised Vulcan Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.75.

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.