New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Sells 17,110 Shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 40.8% during the first quarter, managing 24,776 shares valued at $5.78 million after selling 17,110 shares.
• Several institutional investors recently altered their positions in Vulcan Materials, with Franklin Resources Inc. increasing its holdings by 33.8% during the fourth quarter.
• Vulcan Materials announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.7%, set to be paid on September 3rd.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 40.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,776 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 17,110 shares during the quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $5,780,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 7.4% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,507,892 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,518,291,000 after acquiring an additional 445,691 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,746,482 shares of the construction company's stock worth $449,248,000 after acquiring an additional 177,918 shares in the last quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company's stock worth $329,769,000 after acquiring an additional 450,000 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,163,900 shares of the construction company's stock worth $299,390,000 after acquiring an additional 96,724 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 928,469 shares of the construction company's stock worth $238,831,000 after acquiring an additional 50,327 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on VMC shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $321.00 price objective (up previously from $305.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stephens set a $315.00 price objective on Vulcan Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $304.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $405,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,832 shares in the company, valued at $764,640. This represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of VMC traded up $4.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $286.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 638,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,060,300. The firm has a market cap of $37.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.83. 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 1.13, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a 50 day moving average of $267.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $258.06.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.65 by ($0.20). The business had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 12.81%. Vulcan Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.37%.

About Vulcan Materials

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.