Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMCGet Free Report) has earned an average rating of “Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $302.91.

Several brokerages have commented on VMC. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group raised Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Vulcan Materials from $273.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, March 24th.

Read Our Latest Research Report on VMC

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE VMC opened at $258.84 on Wednesday. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $215.08 and a 12 month high of $298.31. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $259.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $257.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $34.19 billion, a PE ratio of 36.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.84.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMCGet Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.91% and a net margin of 12.50%. Vulcan Materials’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $405,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $764,640. The trade was a 34.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

(Get Free Report

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

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