Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP Has $25.29 Million Stock Position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP cut its stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 111,406 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 3,120 shares during the period. Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP owned approximately 0.08% of Vulcan Materials worth $25,290,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strs Ohio boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 74,103 shares of the construction company's stock worth $16,822,000 after purchasing an additional 4,412 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 50.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 32,713 shares of the construction company's stock worth $7,384,000 after purchasing an additional 10,991 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 17,706.3% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 47,899 shares of the construction company's stock worth $10,874,000 after purchasing an additional 47,630 shares during the period. Smith Salley & Associates acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth $3,185,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 205,506 shares of the construction company's stock worth $46,652,000 after purchasing an additional 16,942 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total value of $862,336.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,453,844.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total transaction of $862,336.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.48, for a total transaction of $312,576.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,958.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,017 shares of company stock valued at $3,344,741 in the last three months. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VMC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $236.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $263.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $270.00 price objective (up from $245.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.00.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of VMC stock traded down $3.01 on Friday, reaching $252.06. The stock had a trading volume of 613,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 584,844. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm's 50-day moving average is $263.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.83. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $166.43 and a 12 month high of $276.58.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.84 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business's revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. Vulcan Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.36%.

About Vulcan Materials

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.