Southernsun Asset Management LLC Reduces Stake in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• Southernsun Asset Management cut its stake in Valmont Industries by 18% in the first quarter, selling 3,631 shares and ending with 16,597 shares valued at about $6.63 million.
• Valmont Industries reported a strong second quarter, with EPS of $6.14 and revenue of $1.12 billion, both topping analyst expectations. The company also raised full-year guidance amid solid utility and infrastructure demand.
• Wall Street sentiment remains generally constructive, with recent target-price hikes from Stifel and JPMorgan and a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. However, some weakness in agriculture and telecom demand, along with valuation concerns, has tempered enthusiasm.

Southernsun Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 18.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,597 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,631 shares during the period. Valmont Industries comprises about 1.0% of Southernsun Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Southernsun Asset Management LLC owned 0.09% of Valmont Industries worth $6,632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VMI. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 85,346 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,336,000 after purchasing an additional 10,518 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,749,000. Dakota Wealth Management bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $581,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 6,762.8% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 8,853 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,562,000 after buying an additional 8,724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leuthold Group LLC increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 983.7% during the fourth quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 11,498 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,626,000 after buying an additional 10,437 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VMI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Valmont Industries from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings raised Valmont Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $582.00.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMI opened at $506.10 on Wednesday. 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 1-year low of $337.93 and a 1-year high of $585.71. The company has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.33. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $539.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $477.08.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.88 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 26th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.10%.

Key Headlines Impacting Valmont Industries

Here are the key news stories impacting Valmont Industries this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Valmont beat second-quarter estimates, reporting EPS of $6.14 versus expectations of $5.76 and revenue of $1.12 billion versus $1.09 billion expected, suggesting solid operational performance. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised full-year guidance, and commentary highlighted strong utility/infrastructure demand, which supports the long-term growth story for VMI. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts continued to frame the quarter as a mixed setup: strong utility growth and better earnings, but only a moderate increase to EPS guidance, which may have limited the upside reaction. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent price-target updates remain constructive, including Stifel’s move to $678 and JP Morgan’s $600 target, indicating Wall Street still sees upside despite the pullback. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Shares fell as investors weighed lingering weakness in agriculture and softer telecommunications demand, which offset the strong headline earnings beat. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: GuruFocus said VMI remains overvalued on its GF Value measure, reinforcing concerns that the stock may have gotten ahead of fundamentals. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Valmont Industries

In other Valmont Industries news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The stock was 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 owned 112,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,294,213.06. This represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

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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