Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Shares Sold by Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank lowered its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 11.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,267 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth $380,369,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 239.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 739,003 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $190,094,000 after buying an additional 521,508 shares during the last quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $329,769,000 after buying an additional 450,000 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,507,892 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,518,291,000 after buying an additional 445,691 shares during the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 271.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 559,643 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $143,957,000 after buying an additional 408,803 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on VMC. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Stephens set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $273.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, March 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $302.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 2,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $764,640. This represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of VMC opened at $266.24 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $264.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $256.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $35.17 billion, a PE ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.82. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.80 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 27.80%.

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.