Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI Holdings Decreased by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas reduced its stake in Valmont Industries by 19.8% in Q4, selling 5,014 shares and retaining 20,356 shares valued at about $8.19 million, while institutional ownership stands near 87.84%.
• Valmont posted an earnings beat (EPS $5.51 vs. $4.72 expected; revenue $1.03B vs. $994.85M, +6.2% YoY) and several analysts raised price targets—consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with a $500.33 average price target.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.77 (annualized $3.08), up from $0.68, implying a 0.6% yield and a payout ratio of 17.1%.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas reduced its stake in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 19.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,356 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,014 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.10% of Valmont Industries worth $8,190,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Valmont Industries by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 640 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Valmont Industries by 1,220.4% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 7,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,177,000 after acquiring an additional 7,298 shares in the last quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP raised its position in Valmont Industries by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP now owns 14,506 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,836,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in Valmont Industries by 30.9% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 7,863 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,175,000 after acquiring an additional 1,854 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TABR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $2,422,000. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on VMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research note on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $500.33.

Valmont Industries Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of VMI stock opened at $498.33 on Friday. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $286.50 and a 12 month high of $499.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 27.67 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $429.37 and a 200-day moving average of $423.62.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.79. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.85 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.32 earnings per share. Valmont Industries's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.93 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Valmont Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 27th. Valmont Industries's payout ratio is presently 17.10%.

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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