Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada cut its Valmont Industries stake by 11% in the first quarter, selling 2,859 shares and retaining 23,226 shares valued at approximately $9.28 million. Institutional investors collectively own 87.84% of the company.
• Analysts remain generally optimistic, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $587 price target. JPMorgan and Stifel recently raised their targets to $620 and $678, respectively.
• Valmont exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $6.14 per share and revenue of $1.12 billion, up 6.5% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share, representing a 0.6% yield.

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its stake in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 11.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,226 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,859 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.12% of Valmont Industries worth $9,280,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VMI. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its holdings in Valmont Industries by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 2,303 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $927,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,130 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 0.4% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 7,565 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,933,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 453 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Balefire LLC grew its holdings in Valmont Industries by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Balefire LLC now owns 701 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on VMI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Zacks Research lowered Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valmont Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $600.00 target price on Valmont Industries and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $587.00.

Valmont Industries Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE VMI opened at $494.14 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.35. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $360.41 and a one year high of $585.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $532.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $482.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.35.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.34. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 11.70% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.88 earnings per share. Valmont Industries's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 23.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Valmont Industries's payout ratio is currently 11.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total transaction of $396,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,388,475. The trade was a 22.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO John L. Schwietz bought 208 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $486.14 per share, with a total value of $101,117.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 2,992 shares in the company, valued at $1,454,530.88. The trade was a 7.47% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Valmont Industries 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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