DAVENPORT & Co LLC Raises Stake in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)

DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 14.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,704 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,311 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC's holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $2,497,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE VMC opened at $266.24 on Friday. Vulcan Materials Company has a 12-month low of $215.08 and a 12-month high of $298.31. The company has a market capitalization of $35.17 billion, a PE ratio of 37.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The firm's 50-day moving average is $264.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $256.25.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The company's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.80 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on VMC. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Stephens set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $302.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $405,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at $764,640. The trade was a 34.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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