Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Vulcan Materials has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with eight buy ratings and eight hold ratings among 16 covering firms. The average 12-month price target is about $327.79.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.35 versus expectations of $1.10 and revenue of $1.76 billion versus estimates of $1.64 billion. Revenue rose 7.4% year over year.
• Vulcan Materials also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, payable September 2, implying an annualized dividend of $2.08 and a yield of about 0.7%. An insider sale by SVP David P. Clement was also disclosed.

Shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $327.7857.

Several research firms have weighed in on VMC. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $333.00 price target on Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $350.00 to $349.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 8th.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE VMC opened at $277.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $36.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.05. Vulcan Materials has a 52 week low of $252.35 and a 52 week high of $331.09. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $286.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $290.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.25. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 13.81%.The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.00 EPS. Vulcan Materials's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 9.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials's payout ratio is presently 24.73%.

Insider Transactions at Vulcan Materials

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,212 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.29, for a total transaction of $646,545.48. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,547,599.64. This trade represents a 20.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 71.7% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 103 shares of the construction company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vulcan Materials

Vulcan Materials Company NYSE: VMC is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company's primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.

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