UBS Group AG Sells 35,156 Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Key Points

• UBS Group AG cut its stake in Valmont Industries by 25.3%, selling 35,156 shares in Q4 and retaining 103,656 shares worth about $41.7 million.
• Valmont beat expectations for the quarter with EPS $5.51 vs. $4.72 and revenue of $1.03 billion, triggering analyst upgrades and an average price target of $500.33 (consensus "Moderate Buy").
• Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares at an average of $492.34, cutting his stake by 13.48%; insiders now own 1.42% of the company.

UBS Group AG decreased its position in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 25.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 103,656 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 35,156 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned 0.53% of Valmont Industries worth $41,703,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $739,000. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $1,658,000. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in Valmont Industries by 14.1% during the fourth 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. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Valmont Industries by 441.2% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 4,941 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,916,000 after purchasing an additional 4,028 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $5,663,000. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on VMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Zacks Research raised Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research note on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Valmont Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $500.33.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Valmont Industries stock opened at $508.89 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $435.69 and a 200-day moving average of $428.89. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $304.48 and a 1 year high of $528.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.59. The company has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26 and a beta of 1.36.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.79. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 24.94% and a net margin of 8.91%.The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.85 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.32 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 112,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,294,213.06. This represents a 13.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

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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