Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Stock Price

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) had its target price decreased by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $322.00 to $321.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the construction company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 14.78% from the stock’s current price.

VMC has been the topic of several other reports. B. Riley Financial started coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Thursday, January 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down from $335.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Vulcan Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $324.85.

Vulcan Materials Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:VMC traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $279.66. The stock had a trading volume of 247,367 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,277,598. The company has a market cap of $36.48 billion, a PE ratio of 34.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $291.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $294.11. Vulcan Materials has a 1-year low of $218.87 and a 1-year high of $331.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total transaction of $345,329.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vulcan Materials

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,207,183 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,293,274,000 after purchasing an additional 311,539 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,924,285 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,437,669,000 after purchasing an additional 99,298 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 5.8% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,625,271 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,345,703,000 after purchasing an additional 414,828 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 1.7% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,558,791 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,449,844,000 after buying an additional 95,256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,576,172 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,016,168,000 after buying an additional 32,012 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

About Vulcan Materials

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.