Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $273.00.

A number of brokerages recently commented on VMC. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $208.00 price target for the company. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Vulcan Materials from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $236.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

NYSE:VMC opened at $255.07 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $263.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $232.60. The company has a market cap of $33.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Vulcan Materials has a 52 week low of $166.43 and a 52 week high of $276.58.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total transaction of $862,336.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,453,844.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Vulcan Materials news, insider Stanley G. Bass sold 8,310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.68, for a total transaction of $2,091,460.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,311 shares in the company, valued at $7,376,992.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total transaction of $862,336.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at $1,453,844.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,017 shares of company stock valued at $3,344,741 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vulcan Materials

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.6% during the first quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,579 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 4,442 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,916 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.6% during the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 3,248 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $656,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

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.