SEB Asset Management AB Purchases Shares of 27,165 Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 27,165 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,397,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atria Investments Inc grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 12,334 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,518,000 after buying an additional 4,331 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $1,318,000. North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $1,293,000. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,821,000. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 254,044 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $72,459,000 after acquiring an additional 17,488 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on VMC shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Berenberg Bank set a $283.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $333.00 price target on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.79.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock opened at $276.35 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $286.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $290.84. Vulcan Materials Company has a 12-month low of $252.35 and a 12-month high of $331.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $35.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 2.03 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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.25. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.73%.

Insider Activity at Vulcan Materials

In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,212 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.29, for a total transaction of $646,545.48. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,547,599.64. The trade was a 20.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

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.