5,455 Shares in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC Bought by Sciencast Management LP

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP has made a new investment in Vulcan Materials Company, acquiring 5,455 shares worth approximately $1.27 million during the first quarter.
• Vulcan Materials reported a EPS of $2.45 for the last quarter, missing analysts' estimates of $2.65, while the company's revenue was $2.10 billion, below expectations of $2.23 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49, with an annualized yield of 0.7%, and maintains a dividend payout ratio of 27.37%.

Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,455 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,273,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 2.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,699,662 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,896,031,000 after purchasing an additional 347,155 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 5.6% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,967,777 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,625,583,000 after buying an additional 370,434 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 7.4% during 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 buying an additional 445,691 shares during the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,746,482 shares of the construction company's stock worth $449,248,000 after buying an additional 177,918 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 4.4% during the first quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,338,346 shares of the construction company's stock worth $312,236,000 after buying an additional 56,345 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. 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 note on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $286.00 to $279.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $321.00 target price (up previously from $305.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $303.00 to $285.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $308.36.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of VMC stock traded up $7.35 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $301.78. 808,082 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 716,890. The business has a 50 day moving average of $281.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $261.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52 week low of $215.08 and a 52 week high of $302.22. The company has a market capitalization of $39.87 billion, a PE ratio of 42.15, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. 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.