Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 target price (down from $335.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $345.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.29.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of VMC opened at $265.50 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market cap of $34.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.70, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $302.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $296.77. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $218.87 and a 52-week high of $331.09.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.70 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 EPS. Vulcan Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vulcan Materials news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total transaction of $345,329.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.8% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 175,458 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $45,763,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 5.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,625,271 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,345,703,000 after buying an additional 414,828 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 12.3% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,824,987 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,040,914,000 after buying an additional 857,210 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 104.3% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 72,113 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,183,000 after buying an additional 36,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EFG Asset Management North America Corp. bought a new position in Vulcan Materials during the third quarter worth about $1,232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

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.