QRG Capital Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 19.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,700 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 3,017 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $5,334,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 84 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of VMC stock opened at $295.77 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $283.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $292.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.38 billion, a PE ratio of 35.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.09. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52-week low of $252.35 and a 52-week high of $331.09.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 13.81%.The company’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.28 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In related news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the firm’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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on VMC. Raymond James Financial set a $325.00 target price on Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Vulcan Materials from $365.00 to $355.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $329.62.

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.