Sapient Capital LLC Buys Shares of 919 Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 919 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 273.4% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 295 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $61,000. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 295 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In related news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total transaction of $862,336.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total value of $862,336.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,453,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.48, for a total transaction of $312,576.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 330 shares in the company, valued at $85,958.40. 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 quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Vulcan Materials from $264.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Vulcan Materials from $263.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.08.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 0.7 %

VMC opened at $268.44 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $265.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $237.76. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $190.51 and a 12 month high of $276.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.81.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The construction company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 11.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This is an increase from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 26.86%.

Vulcan Materials 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.