Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. Buys New Shares in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Key Points

• Daiichi Life Insurance initiated a position in Vulcan Materials, purchasing 6,648 shares valued at approximately $1.96 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.39% of the company.
• Vulcan Materials exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.59 in EPS versus the $2.46 consensus estimate and $2.16 billion in revenue, up 2.5% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, equivalent to an annualized $2.08 payout and a 0.8% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $327.93.

Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 6,648 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,961,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,868,444,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,576,172 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,016,168,000 after purchasing an additional 32,012 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 6.1% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,309,444 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $602,349,000 after purchasing an additional 133,523 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,727,232 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $492,642,000 after purchasing an additional 126,523 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,346,422 shares of the construction company's stock worth $366,592,000 after purchasing an additional 24,187 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

NYSE VMC opened at $275.48 on Monday. Vulcan Materials Company has a 1-year low of $252.35 and a 1-year high of $331.09. The company has a 50 day moving average of $289.19 and a 200-day moving average of $287.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $35.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.52, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.06.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.13. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 13.75% and a return on equity of 13.05%. The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.42 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Vulcan Materials's payout ratio is presently 24.56%.

Insider Activity at Vulcan Materials

In related news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,000 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.10, for a total transaction of $570,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 6,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,914,731.60. The trade was a 22.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VMC. Berenberg Bank set a $283.00 price target on shares of Vulcan Materials and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $333.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $293.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $327.93.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

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.

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