Geode Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management increased its Valmont Industries stake by 3.5% in Q4, adding 12,480 shares to reach 369,059 shares valued at about $148.5 million.
• Valmont Industries reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $5.51 per share topping estimates and revenue rising 6.2% year over year to $1.03 billion.
• Analysts remain upbeat on the stock, with several raising price targets and the consensus rating currently sitting at Buy; the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share.

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 369,059 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 12,480 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.87% of Valmont Industries worth $148,509,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,130 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $455,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 0.4% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 7,565 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,933,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 582 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 0.5% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,223 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,413,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 459 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $185,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMI opened at $545.66 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.30, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.34. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $316.56 and a 52 week high of $548.90. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $472.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $444.16.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.79. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.85 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.32 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.83 earnings per share for the current 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 paid 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 17.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valmont Industries

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $55,294,213.06. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VMI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Valmont Industries and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Valmont Industries currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $525.25.

About Valmont Industries

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VMI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.