Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on VMI. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Valmont Industries from $264.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $262.00.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of VMI opened at $220.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.47. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.66 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $222.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $223.99. Valmont Industries has a twelve month low of $188.63 and a twelve month high of $324.50.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1,000.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 20.69%. Valmont Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Valmont Industries will post 14.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is currently 35.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hamel Associates Inc. raised its stake in Valmont Industries by 1.2% during the third quarter. Hamel Associates Inc. now owns 22,607 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,430,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Valmont Industries by 97.4% during the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 15,703 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,807,000 after purchasing an additional 7,749 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its position in Valmont Industries by 27.7% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 421 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Valmont Industries by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 12,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,863,000 after buying an additional 1,911 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 34.5% during the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 124,682 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,950,000 after buying an additional 31,962 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc produces and sells metal products in the United States, Australia, Brazil, Denmark, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Infrastructure and Agriculture. It manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite, and hybrid structures for lighting, transportation, and telecommunications equipment, as well as electrical transmission, distribution, substations, and renewable energy generation equipment; and provides coatings services to preserve metal products.