Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lowered its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) by 43.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,418 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 40,841 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $30,854,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 56,102.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 13,046,829 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,535,848,000 after acquiring an additional 13,023,615 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,141,369,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at $175,408,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 4th quarter worth $99,799,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 282,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,884,000 after purchasing an additional 153,418 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VMI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price target on Valmont Industries and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research cut Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $587.00.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other Valmont Industries news, CFO John Schwietz bought 208 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $486.14 per share, with a total value of $101,117.12. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 2,992 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,454,530.88. This represents a 7.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Theodor Freye sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $396,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,388,475. This represents a 22.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Valmont Industries Stock Up 0.6%

VMI stock opened at $484.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.35 billion, a PE ratio of 18.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day moving average of $501.97 and a 200-day moving average of $486.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.35. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $361.50 and a one year high of $585.71.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 11.70% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The business’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.88 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 23.08 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is presently 11.99%.

About Valmont Industries

Valmont Industries, Inc (NYSE: VMI) is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in infrastructure and agricultural products. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, the company engages in the design, production and distribution of engineered products that support water management, power transmission, lighting and traffic infrastructure. Valmont’s solutions range from center-pivot and lateral-move irrigation systems to utility poles, transmission towers, lighting structures and highway traffic signal support structures.

The company operates through several core business segments.