Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

Bank of Nova Scotia decreased its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 29.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,600 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,600 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $2,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VMI. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 37.8% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 3,999 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,226,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 44.3% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 1,206 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 40,748 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,496,000 after acquiring an additional 8,047 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,577 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,630,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 175.7% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 193 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $345.00 to $382.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. William Blair raised shares of Valmont Industries from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Valmont Industries stock traded up $0.49 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $368.50. The stock had a trading volume of 139,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 160,336. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $250.07 and a 52-week high of $379.22. The company has a market capitalization of $7.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.31 and a beta of 1.12. The firm's fifty day moving average is $337.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $321.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $4.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.78 by $0.10. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 5.98% and a return on equity of 22.10%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.91 EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.07 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be given a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,867 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total value of $1,027,876.84. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,746 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,494,135.92. The trade was a 22.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.