Atika Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Key Points

• Atika Capital Management LLC has acquired 4,800 shares of Vulcan Materials Company, valued at approximately $1.12 million, marking a significant investment in the construction company during the first quarter.
• Analysts have issued a consensus price target of $304.27 for Vulcan Materials, with several firms giving the stock a "buy" or "overweight" rating, indicating positive sentiment towards the company's future performance.
• Vulcan Materials recently reported earnings of $2.45 per share, missing estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49, reflecting a payout ratio of 27.37%.

Atika Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 4,800 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,120,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 239.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 739,003 shares of the construction company's stock worth $190,094,000 after buying an additional 521,508 shares during the last quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company's stock worth $329,769,000 after buying an additional 450,000 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,507,892 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,518,291,000 after buying an additional 445,691 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 271.0% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 559,643 shares of the construction company's stock worth $143,957,000 after buying an additional 408,803 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 29,580.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 398,010 shares of the construction company's stock worth $92,856,000 after buying an additional 396,669 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock traded up $4.0170 during trading on Friday, hitting $292.2970. The stock had a trading volume of 529,856 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,045,533. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $38.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.82, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a fifty day moving average of $272.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $259.08. Vulcan Materials Company has a fifty-two week low of $215.08 and a fifty-two week high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.65 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is 27.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $303.00 to $285.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $286.00 to $279.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Barclays increased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $304.27.

Vulcan Materials Profile

Vulcan Materials Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies construction aggregates primarily in the United States. It operates through four segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The company provides crushed stones, sand and gravel, sand, and other aggregates; and related products and services that are applied in construction and maintenance of highways, streets, and other public works, as well as in the construction of housing and commercial, industrial, and other nonresidential facilities.