Vulcan Materials Company $VMC Shares Sold by Fernbridge Capital Management LP

Key Points

• Fernbridge Capital Management LP cut its Vulcan Materials stake by 8.8% in Q3, selling 22,406 shares and retaining 232,566 shares (about $71.54M), making VMC its sixth-largest holding at 3.5% of the portfolio.
• Vulcan missed quarterly expectations with EPS of $1.70 vs. $2.11 expected and revenue of $1.91B vs. $1.95B, but raised its quarterly dividend to $0.52 (annualized $2.08, yield ~0.8%).
• Analyst views are mixed—some firms raised targets (Citigroup to $365) while others lowered them—but the Street consensus is a Moderate Buy with a $326.29 target price.

Fernbridge Capital Management LP decreased its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 8.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 232,566 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 22,406 shares during the period. Vulcan Materials comprises 3.5% of Fernbridge Capital Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Fernbridge Capital Management LP owned about 0.18% of Vulcan Materials worth $71,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 960 shares of the construction company's stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. now owns 6,416 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,974,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Massachusetts Wealth Management boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 5,470 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,683,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Bollard Group LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 5.3% in the second quarter. Bollard Group LLC now owns 819 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.7% in the third quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,523 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $776,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on VMC shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $321.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $320.00 price target (down from $335.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $316.00 to $296.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $326.29.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of VMC stock opened at $265.50 on Friday. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52 week low of $218.87 and a 52 week high of $331.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.67 billion, a PE ratio of 32.70, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.69. The stock's fifty day moving average is $302.31 and its 200-day moving average is $296.77.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.41). The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 13.56% and a return on equity of 12.56%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.62%.

Insider Activity at Vulcan Materials

In related news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total value of $345,329.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Vulcan Materials

Vulcan Materials Company NYSE: VMC is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company's primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.

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