SlateStone Wealth LLC Purchases 1,035 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

SlateStone Wealth LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,254 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,035 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $2,328,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VMC. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 295 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,483 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $564,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 14,815 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,363,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,627 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,033 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $916,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James increased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Vulcan Materials in a report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $208.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $270.00 price objective (up from $245.00) on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $264.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $263.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Vulcan Materials news, SVP Denson N. Franklin III sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.48, for a total value of $862,336.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stanley G. Bass sold 8,310 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 29,311 shares in the company, valued at $7,376,992.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,017 shares of company stock worth $3,344,741 in the last 90 days. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Shares of VMC stock traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $259.66. 28,393 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 776,610. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $166.43 and a 12 month high of $276.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $264.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 2.39 and a current ratio of 3.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.35 billion, a PE ratio of 37.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.83.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.06. The company 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%. Vulcan Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.43 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is presently 26.36%.

About Vulcan Materials

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.