KBC Group NV Increases Position in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) by 41.9% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,696 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 3,158 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $4,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VMI. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 225.1% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 67,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $19,300,000 after acquiring an additional 46,825 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Valmont Industries by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 59,127 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $16,873,000 after acquiring an additional 4,676 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Valmont Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 3.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 72,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,692,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 223.4% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

VMI opened at $487.49 on Friday. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $352.60 and a 12-month high of $585.71. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $538.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $478.22. The company has a market capitalization of $9.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.98, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.33.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.34. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 11.70%.The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.88 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 26th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VMI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 target price on shares of Valmont Industries and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $587.00.

Valmont Industries Profile

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.