Brokerages Set Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Target Price at $283.92

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $283.92.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VMC. Citigroup decreased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $297.00 to $292.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays increased their target price on Vulcan Materials from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. UBS Group began coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $349.00 target price for the company. Stephens reduced their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $267.00 to $257.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

Vulcan Materials stock opened at $285.51 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $267.43 and its 200-day moving average is $255.75. The company has a market cap of $37.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.02. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $210.85 and a 12 month high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.34 by ($0.12). Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 11.43% and a return on equity of 11.88%. The company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,332,431,000 after buying an additional 884,580 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,281,102 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,322,546,000 after buying an additional 65,163 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,660,931 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $916,807,000 after buying an additional 78,271 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,311,585 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $826,644,000 after buying an additional 33,061 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,130,537 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $533,551,000 after buying an additional 330,433 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

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.