Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Lowered to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also commented on VMI. William Blair lowered shares of Valmont Industries from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, DA Davidson cut shares of Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VMI opened at $289.99 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $329.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $320.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The company has a market cap of $5.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 0.98. Valmont Industries has a 1-year low of $202.01 and a 1-year high of $379.22.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.21. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 23.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.18 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Valmont Industries will post 18.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Covea Finance grew its position in Valmont Industries by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. Covea Finance now owns 15,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,661,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $466,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 70.3% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 46,244 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,182,000 after buying an additional 19,096 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $698,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Valmont Industries by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 17,421 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,326,000 after acquiring an additional 2,521 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valmont Industries

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.