Vulcan Materials’ (VMC) Neutral Rating Reiterated at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued their neutral rating on shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) in a research note published on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has a $320.00 price target on the construction company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $335.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Vulcan Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $320.00 price target on Vulcan Materials in a report on Wednesday. B. Riley Financial initiated coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.14.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 4.5%

Shares of NYSE:VMC opened at $274.42 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.80, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.69. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $304.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $297.52. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $331.09.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.41). Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 13.56%.The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.17 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is an increase from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total value of $345,329.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 665 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total transaction of $196,175.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,443,780. This represents a 7.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,937 shares of company stock valued at $2,687,784. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 100.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 84 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. bought a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company’s primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.