Strs Ohio Cuts Stock Holdings in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Strs Ohio reduced its position in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 38.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,767 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 43,994 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $19,899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $497,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 3.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,359 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 6.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,195 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 28.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,321 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $775,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 31.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 334 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total value of $345,329.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VMC shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $333.00 price target on Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday. Barclays upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Stephens upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup dropped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $365.00 to $355.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down from $335.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $329.62.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 0.1%

VMC opened at $297.00 on Monday. Vulcan Materials Company has a one year low of $252.35 and a one year high of $331.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.54 billion, a PE ratio of 35.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $284.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $292.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 2.59.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.25. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 13.81%.The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.28 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $0.52 dividend. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.73%.

Vulcan Materials Company 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.