Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Valmont Industries reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $380.48 and last recorded at $379.72, showcasing strong market performance with significant trading volume.
• Analysts made several rating changes for Valmont Industries, with William Blair raising the stock to "outperform" and DA Davidson increasing the target price to $400.00.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.68 per share, set to be paid on October 15th, representing an annualized dividend yield of 0.7%.

Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $380.48 and last traded at $379.72, with a volume of 190476 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $367.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VMI shares. William Blair raised shares of Valmont Industries from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson upped their target price on Valmont Industries from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $345.00 to $382.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $7.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.36 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $339.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $321.87.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $4.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.78 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 22.10% and a net margin of 5.98%. Valmont Industries's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.07 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio is 25.33%.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other news, CAO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,867 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total transaction of $1,027,876.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,746 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,494,135.92. This represents a 22.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Valmont Industries by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 46,566 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $13,289,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Valmont Industries by 82.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 226 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Valmont Industries by 18.0% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,579 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $736,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Valmont Industries by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $425,000 after buying an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Valmont Industries by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 6,602 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,025,000 after buying an additional 922 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.

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