Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Trims Stock Holdings in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its stake in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) by 18.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,647 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,603 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $6,689,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,378,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 802,356 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $187,358,000 after purchasing an additional 5,109 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $22,332,000. Cubic Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 31,350 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,342,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Valmont Industries Stock Up 1.7 %

VMI stock opened at $213.20 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $219.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $221.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.47. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $188.63 and a fifty-two week high of $315.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.63 and a beta of 1.03.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1,000.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 3.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VMI. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $249.00 price target on shares of Valmont Industries in a research note on Monday, March 25th. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Valmont Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.00.

Valmont Industries Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.