Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Rating Lowered to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Valmont Industries from “strong buy” to “buy,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $587.
• Valmont reported quarterly EPS of $6.14, beating estimates of $5.80, while revenue rose 6.5% year over year to $1.12 billion.
• Insider activity was mixed: CFO John L. Schwietz purchased approximately $101,000 of shares, while director Theodor Werner Freye sold $396,000 worth. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the stock.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

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

Valmont Industries Stock Up 0.5%

Valmont Industries stock opened at $494.14 on Friday. Valmont Industries has a twelve month low of $360.41 and a twelve month high of $585.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.35. The firm has a market cap of $9.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.35. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $532.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $482.32.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.34. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 11.70% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.88 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Valmont Industries will post 23.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John L. Schwietz bought 208 shares of Valmont Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $486.14 per share, for a total transaction of $101,117.12. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 2,992 shares in the company, valued at $1,454,530.88. This trade represents a 7.47% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $396,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,388,475. The trade was a 22.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Valmont Industries

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. RHS Financial LLC acquired a new position in Valmont Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at $330,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the second quarter valued at about $3,539,000. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the second quarter valued at about $578,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the second quarter valued at about $1,141,369,000. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries in the second quarter worth about $463,000. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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