Leuthold Group LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Leuthold Group LLC boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 983.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 11,498 shares valued at about $4.63 million.
• Valmont Industries posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.51 and revenue of $1.03 billion, both topping analyst expectations; revenue rose 6.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally upbeat: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating with a consensus price target of $500.33, while Valmont also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share.

Leuthold Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 983.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,498 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 10,437 shares during the quarter. Leuthold Group LLC owned 0.06% of Valmont Industries worth $4,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $739,000. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,658,000. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in 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 valued at $34,336,000 after purchasing an additional 10,518 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,663,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in Valmont Industries by 1.2% during 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 last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on VMI. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research note on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Valmont Industries from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $500.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $492.34, for a total value of $8,615,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 112,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,294,213.06. This represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

NYSE VMI opened at $506.19 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.11 and a beta of 1.36. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $305.07 and a twelve month high of $528.49. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $442.24 and a 200 day moving average of $433.05.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $994.85 million. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 24.94% and a net margin of 8.91%.Valmont Industries's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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