Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Given New $309.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) had its price target lifted by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $287.00 to $309.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the construction company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price would indicate a potential upside of 15.59% from the stock’s previous close.

VMC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $273.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Argus upgraded Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.64.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of VMC stock opened at $267.32 on Friday. 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 has a 12-month low of $215.08 and a 12-month high of $298.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $239.03 and its 200 day moving average is $259.80.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. Research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

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.