Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Sunday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on VMC. Citigroup decreased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $365.00 to $355.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial set a $325.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.79.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMC traded up $6.77 on Friday, reaching $295.50. 1,492,960 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,127,913. Vulcan Materials has a fifty-two week low of $252.35 and a fifty-two week high of $331.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $286.70 and its 200-day moving average is $291.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.34 billion, a PE ratio of 35.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.89.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 13.81%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 9.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,212 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.29, for a total transaction of $646,545.48. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,547,599.64. This trade represents a 20.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vulcan Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VMC. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,576,172 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,016,168,000 after purchasing an additional 32,012 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Vulcan Materials by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,318,474 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $713,209,000 after buying an additional 9,030 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,727,232 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $492,642,000 after buying an additional 126,523 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $425,938,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,346,422 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $366,592,000 after buying an additional 24,187 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.