Vulcan Materials Company $VMC Shares Sold by Korea Investment CORP

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP reduced its stake in Vulcan Materials Company by 40.4% during the first quarter, selling 39,904 shares and leaving it with 58,846 shares worth approximately $13.7 million.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $2.45 per share, missing the consensus estimate, and its revenue for the quarter was $2.10 billion compared to expectations of $2.23 billion.
• Vulcan Materials declared a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, representing a dividend yield of 0.7%, with the payout scheduled for September 3rd.

Korea Investment CORP trimmed its holdings in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 40.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 58,846 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 39,904 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP's holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $13,729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth $497,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in Vulcan Materials by 28.9% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,196 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,080,000 after buying an additional 942 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 77.9% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 28,092 shares of the construction company's stock worth $7,226,000 after purchasing an additional 12,298 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 3,450.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 3,018 shares of the construction company's stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 2,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 41.2% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 28,160 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,244,000 after acquiring an additional 8,214 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on VMC shares. Barclays increased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens set a $315.00 price target on Vulcan Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $280.00 to $318.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $303.00 to $285.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $304.27.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock traded up $4.0170 on Friday, reaching $292.2970. 529,856 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,043,043. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Vulcan Materials Company has a twelve month low of $215.08 and a twelve month high of $298.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.82, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $272.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $259.08.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.65 by ($0.20). Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 12.52%.The business had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.35 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.37%.

Vulcan Materials Profile

Vulcan Materials Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies construction aggregates primarily in the United States. It operates through four segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The company provides crushed stones, sand and gravel, sand, and other aggregates; and related products and services that are applied in construction and maintenance of highways, streets, and other public works, as well as in the construction of housing and commercial, industrial, and other nonresidential facilities.