Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Sells 3,712 Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Gamco Investors trimmed its Valmont Industries stake by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,712 shares and ending with 59,365 shares valued at about $23.9 million.
• Valmont posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, reporting EPS of $5.51 versus consensus of $4.72 and revenue of $1.03 billion, up 6.2% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment is mostly positive: recent upgrades pushed the stock to an average “Moderate Buy” rating, with a consensus price target of $500.33, while the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share.

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL reduced its position in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,365 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,712 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned 0.30% of Valmont Industries worth $23,884,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter worth $739,000. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter worth $1,658,000. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 85,346 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,336,000 after buying an additional 10,518 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter worth $5,663,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in Valmont Industries by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 283,740 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $110,015,000 after purchasing an additional 3,379 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VMI. Zacks Research raised shares of Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a report on Friday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $500.33.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $492.34, for a total transaction of $8,615,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 112,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,294,213.06. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

NYSE:VMI opened at $500.78 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $443.51 and a 200-day moving average of $433.76. The company has a market capitalization of $9.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81 and a beta of 1.36. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $305.07 and a 52 week high of $528.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.38.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.79. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.85 million. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.10%.

Valmont Industries 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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