Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.82 Million Holdings in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,066 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 494 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $1,818,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 19.9% in 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 buying an additional 884,580 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 28,529.4% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 523,631 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,694,000 after purchasing an additional 521,802 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $74,760,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 125.0% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 335,984 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $86,425,000 after purchasing an additional 186,641 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 32.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 736,146 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $184,353,000 after purchasing an additional 178,634 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on VMC. Citigroup cut their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $301.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Raymond James cut their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $302.67.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 1.7 %

VMC stock opened at $234.55 on Friday. Vulcan Materials has a 1-year low of $215.08 and a 1-year high of $298.31. The firm has a market cap of $30.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average is $256.58 and its 200-day moving average is $260.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company posted $1.46 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 28.61%.

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.