IFM Investors Pty Ltd Grows Stock Holdings in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its position in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 14.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,289 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,039 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $8,086,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total transaction 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 approximately $764,640. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on VMC. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $273.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $280.00 to $318.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $302.91.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:VMC traded up $0.53 on Friday, hitting $266.24. The company had a trading volume of 421,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 982,924. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $264.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $256.19. Vulcan Materials Company has a 1 year low of $215.08 and a 1 year high of $298.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.82.

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

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid 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 payout ratio is presently 27.80%.

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.