Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Position Decreased by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its holdings in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,401,037 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 28,341 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $360,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VMC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth $380,369,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,332,431,000 after buying an additional 884,580 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 28,529.4% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 523,631 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $134,694,000 after buying an additional 521,802 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $74,760,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 125.0% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 335,984 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $86,425,000 after acquiring an additional 186,641 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 0.5 %

VMC opened at $241.86 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $31.99 billion, a PE ratio of 35.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $241.50 and a 200-day moving average of $259.44. Vulcan Materials has a fifty-two week low of $215.08 and a fifty-two week high of $298.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 2.02.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal 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 represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. This is an increase from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on VMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $287.00 target price for the company. Seaport Res Ptn raised Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, UBS Group lowered Vulcan Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $343.00 to $258.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $293.64.

About Vulcan Materials

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.