Nordea Investment Management AB Raises Stake in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 3.9%, owning approximately 22,035 shares valued at $7.3 million.
• Several large investors have significantly increased their holdings in Valmont Industries, with Price T Rowe Associates growing its stake by an impressive 759.0% in the first quarter.
• Analysts have boosted their price targets for Valmont Industries, with Stifel Nicolaus raising it to $450 and JPMorgan Chase setting it at $480, indicating a strong market sentiment.

Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 22,035 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 828 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB owned approximately 0.11% of Valmont Industries worth $7,308,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of VMI. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 759.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 172,967 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $49,361,000 after acquiring an additional 152,832 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 118.0% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 274,769 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $78,411,000 after acquiring an additional 148,740 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 5,815.0% in the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 70,980 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $25,179,000 after acquiring an additional 69,780 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the first quarter worth approximately $16,519,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 42.9% in the second quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 187,765 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $61,318,000 after acquiring an additional 56,380 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Valmont Industries in a research note on Friday, September 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $480.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $443.33.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

VMI opened at $408.17 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.00 and a beta of 1.15. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $250.07 and a 1-year high of $414.53. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $381.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $342.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.78 by $0.10. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 5.98% and a return on equity of 22.10%. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.91 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 26th were issued a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 26th. Valmont Industries's payout ratio is 25.33%.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other news, CAO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,867 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total value of $1,027,876.84. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,746 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,494,135.92. The trade was a 22.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.

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