Strs Ohio Buys 4,412 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Strs Ohio raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 74,103 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,412 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $16,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VMC. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.6% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 3,248 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 2.3% in the third quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 2.7% in the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,008 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $406,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 20,255 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,598,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 2.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,269 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $458,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on VMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective (up previously from $245.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $236.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $264.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $268.85.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Randy L. Pigg sold 307 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.27, for a total transaction of $78,367.89. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $483,991.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, VP Randy L. Pigg sold 307 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.27, for a total transaction of $78,367.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at $483,991.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Stanley G. Bass sold 8,310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.68, for a total transaction of $2,091,460.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,376,992.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,017 shares of company stock valued at $3,344,741 over the last ninety days. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMC opened at $258.57 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.83. Vulcan Materials has a 52 week low of $166.43 and a 52 week high of $276.58. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $262.37 and a 200 day moving average of $232.26.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 26.36%.

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.