Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Given New $311.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley cut its Vulcan Materials price target from $321 to $311 and maintained an “equal weight” rating; the new target implies 4.26% upside from the share price cited in the article.
• Analyst sentiment overall remains “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $310.72; 12 analysts rate the stock Buy, nine Hold, and one Sell.
• Vulcan reported quarterly EPS of $2.83, slightly above estimates, but revenue of $2.18 billion fell short of expectations and declined 4.7% year over year.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $321.00 to $311.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the construction company's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price would indicate a potential upside of 4.26% from the stock's current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Vulcan Materials from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings cut Vulcan Materials from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group cut their price target on Vulcan Materials from $349.00 to $326.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, September 21st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $310.72.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of VMC stock traded up $13.70 on Wednesday, reaching $298.30. The stock had a trading volume of 720,436 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,178,168. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm's 50-day moving average is $256.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $280.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.99. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $237.03 and a 12 month high of $331.09.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The construction company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 13.03% and a net margin of 13.77%. Vulcan Materials's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vulcan Materials

In related news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.10, for a total transaction of $570,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 6,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,914,731.60. This trade represents a 22.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director J. Hill sold 14,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total transaction of $3,866,380.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 58,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,075,579.53. This represents a 19.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 71.7% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 103 shares of the construction company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth $37,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Vulcan Materials during the first quarter worth $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

Vulcan Materials Company NYSE: VMC is a producer and distributor of construction materials used in infrastructure, commercial, residential and industrial projects. The company is the largest producer of construction aggregates in the United States, including crushed stone, sand and gravel.

In addition to aggregates, Vulcan Materials produces asphalt mix, ready-mixed concrete and cement. Its materials are used in roads, bridges, airports, commercial buildings, homes and other construction applications.

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