Legal & General Group Plc Grows Stock Holdings in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 3.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 685,246 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,797 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $210,795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 84 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 3rd quarter worth about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In other news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total value of $345,329.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE VMC opened at $263.61 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $302.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $296.95. Vulcan Materials Company has a one year low of $218.87 and a one year high of $331.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.69. The firm has a market cap of $34.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.05.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.11 by ($0.41). Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 13.56%.The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.17 EPS. Vulcan Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Vulcan Materials Company will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 25.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VMC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $330.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $316.00 to $296.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.29.

Vulcan Materials Profile

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.