Royce & Associates LP Sells 15,610 Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP reduced its Valmont Industries stake by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 15,610 shares and leaving it with 155,893 shares valued at about $62.7 million.
• Insider selling also occurred, with director Mogens C. Bay selling 17,500 shares at an average price of $492.34, a transaction worth about $8.62 million.
• Valmont’s fundamentals and outlook remain solid: the company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, and analysts currently have an average “Buy” rating with a $500.33 price target.

Royce & Associates LP lessened its position in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 155,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 15,610 shares during the period. Valmont Industries comprises 0.6% of Royce & Associates LP's holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.79% of Valmont Industries worth $62,719,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMI. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 225.1% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 67,630 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $19,300,000 after purchasing an additional 46,825 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 59,127 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $16,873,000 after purchasing an additional 4,676 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Valmont Industries during the 1st quarter worth about $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 72,511 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $20,692,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 223.4% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 152 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Valmont Industries

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VMI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valmont Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Valmont Industries from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $500.33.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VMI opened at $513.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.51 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $451.44 and a 200-day moving average of $437.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.59. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $307.94 and a fifty-two week high of $528.49.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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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