4,448 Shares in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Acquired by Virtus ETF Advisers LLC

Virtus ETF Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 4,448 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,144,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 138.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 186 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 208 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Monday, March 24th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $343.00 to $258.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $273.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $293.64.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

NYSE VMC traded up $1.63 on Thursday, hitting $263.96. 603,155 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 934,402. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 2.02. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $238.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $259.57. Vulcan Materials has a fifty-two week low of $215.08 and a fifty-two week high of $298.31. The firm has a market cap of $34.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.20. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. Vulcan Materials's payout ratio is presently 28.61%.

Vulcan Materials Company 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.