Royal Bank of Canada Has $86.06 Million Stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 8.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 334,561 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 25,986 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.25% of Vulcan Materials worth $86,059,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VMC. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 254 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,791 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $461,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 906 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 30.0% during the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 208 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,169 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total transaction of $405,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at $764,640. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VMC opened at $275.68 on Tuesday. Vulcan Materials has a fifty-two week low of $215.08 and a fifty-two week high of $298.31. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $246.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 1.83. The stock has a market cap of $36.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.25, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.84.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VMC has been the topic of several research reports. Argus upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $280.00 to $318.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $302.91.

Vulcan Materials Company 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.

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