First Trust Advisors LP Cuts Holdings in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP reduced its Valmont Industries stake by 9.4% in the first quarter, selling 15,781 shares and leaving it with 152,505 shares worth about $60.9 million.
• Valmont reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $6.14 beating estimates and revenue of $1.12 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 6.5% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock: the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $587, and JPMorgan recently raised its target to $620.

First Trust Advisors LP trimmed its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 9.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 152,505 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 15,781 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.79% of Valmont Industries worth $60,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 225.1% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 67,630 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $19,300,000 after acquiring an additional 46,825 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Valmont Industries by 8.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 59,127 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $16,873,000 after acquiring an additional 4,676 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the first quarter worth $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position 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 last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position 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 last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Shares of VMI opened at $486.07 on Friday. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $353.41 and a 1 year high of $585.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.59. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $538.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $478.27. The firm has a market cap of $9.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.93, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.33.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.88 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.96 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

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. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 26th. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VMI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Valmont Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price target on shares of Valmont Industries and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $587.00.

Valmont Industries Company 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.

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