HighTower Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors cut its Valmont Industries stake by 43.3% in the second quarter, selling 40,841 shares and retaining 53,418 shares worth approximately $30.9 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 87.84% of VMI.
• Wall Street maintains a generally positive view, with four analysts rating VMI a Buy and two rating it a Hold. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $587.
• Valmont exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $6.14 per share and revenue of $1.12 billion, up 6.5% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share, representing a 0.6% yield.

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 43.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,418 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 40,841 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.28% of Valmont Industries worth $30,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VMI. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $22,958,000. De Lisle Partners LLP purchased a new position in Valmont Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $13,180,000. Leuthold Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 983.7% in the fourth quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 11,498 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,626,000 after acquiring an additional 10,437 shares in the last quarter. Congruence Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter worth $15,011,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 3.7% during the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 252,605 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $100,933,000 after acquiring an additional 9,130 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VMI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valmont Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price target on Valmont Industries and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $587.00.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other Valmont Industries news, Director Theodor Freye sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total transaction of $396,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,388,475. This trade represents a 22.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO John Schwietz acquired 208 shares of Valmont Industries stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $486.14 per share, with a total value of $101,117.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,992 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,454,530.88. The trade was a 7.47% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Shares of VMI stock opened at $484.36 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.86, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $501.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $486.74. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $361.50 and a 12 month high of $585.71.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.88 earnings per share. Valmont Industries's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 23.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio is 11.99%.

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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