Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $245.35, but opened at $253.00. Vulcan Materials shares last traded at $252.20, with a volume of 166,929 shares trading hands.

The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 28.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vulcan Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group cut shares of Vulcan Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $343.00 to $258.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $293.64.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 74.0% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 23,332 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,443,000 after buying an additional 9,923 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 10.0% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 651 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC bought a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 3.4% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,691 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,127,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares during the period. Finally, Harvey Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.5% during the first quarter. Harvey Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,466 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,541,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 7.1 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $238.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $259.57. The company has a market cap of $34.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80.

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.