Polymer Capital Management US LLC Acquires New Shares in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,724 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $443,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,352,507 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,206,355,000 after acquiring an additional 90,157 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,062,201 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,559,380,000 after purchasing an additional 741,631 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,348,418 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $859,171,000 after purchasing an additional 36,833 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $380,369,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 877,701 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $225,771,000 after buying an additional 13,227 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VMC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.58.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of VMC opened at $230.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.55 billion, a PE ratio of 33.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $250.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.62. Vulcan Materials has a 12-month low of $215.08 and a 12-month high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.41. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.61%.

Vulcan Materials 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.