Vulcan Materials Company $VMC Position Cut by T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Vulcan Materials Company by 50.4%, now holding 277,847 shares valued at approximately $64.8 million.
• Wall Street analysts have varying forecasts for Vulcan Materials, with price targets ranging from $285.00 to $321.00 and a consensus rating of "Buy".
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 0.7%, with a dividend payout ratio of 27.37%.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 50.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 277,847 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 281,796 shares during the quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of Vulcan Materials worth $64,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $497,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 28.9% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,196 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,080,000 after purchasing an additional 942 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 77.9% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 28,092 shares of the construction company's stock worth $7,226,000 after purchasing an additional 12,298 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 3,450.6% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 3,018 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $776,000 after buying an additional 2,933 shares during the period. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 41.2% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 28,160 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,244,000 after buying an additional 8,214 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VMC shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $321.00 price objective (up from $305.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group upgraded Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $280.00 to $318.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $286.00 to $279.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $308.36.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

NYSE:VMC traded down $0.92 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $290.24. 62,696 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,040,307. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Vulcan Materials Company has a 1-year low of $215.08 and a 1-year high of $298.31. The firm's 50-day moving average is $274.27 and its 200-day moving average is $259.53. The stock has a market cap of $38.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.37%.

Vulcan Materials 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.