Trust Co. of Vermont Raises Stock Position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Trust Co. of Vermont raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 144.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 244 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $55,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VMC. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 20,266 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,239,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 11.1% in the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 9,905 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,001,000 after buying an additional 988 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the third quarter worth $1,028,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials during the third quarter valued at $1,114,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 51.9% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 243,794 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $49,251,000 after acquiring an additional 83,322 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of VMC opened at $256.35 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $258.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $247.94. The company has a market cap of $33.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Vulcan Materials has a twelve month low of $190.51 and a twelve month high of $276.58.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The construction company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 11.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.55 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.50, for a total value of $254,500.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,660 shares in the company, valued at $676,970. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.50, for a total transaction of $254,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $676,970. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Thompson S. Baker II sold 6,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.64, for a total transaction of $1,802,150.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 4,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,304,309.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,210 shares of company stock valued at $4,653,520. Insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $319.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Wolfe Research lowered Vulcan Materials from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Truist Financial increased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 target price (up from $245.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.08.

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.