B. Riley Initiates Coverage on Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

B. Riley started coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating on the construction company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $327.00 price target on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $279.00 to $278.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Vulcan Materials to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.92.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 1.4%

VMC stock opened at $306.06 on Thursday. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $313.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $40.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.35, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $293.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $289.60.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The construction company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 13.47% and a net margin of 14.19%.Vulcan Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 665 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total value of $196,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,443,780. The trade was a 7.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.55, for a total value of $577,100.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,073.60. The trade was a 70.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 20,471 shares of company stock worth $6,054,615. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vulcan Materials

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Unified Investment Management increased its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 1.7% in the second quarter. Unified Investment Management now owns 2,259 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $589,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 6.2% during the second quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 648 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $169,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its position in Vulcan Materials by 4.1% during the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 960 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.6% in the third quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. now owns 6,416 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,974,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.