New York State Common Retirement Fund Lowers Position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 125,801 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 10,918 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $28,558,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 47.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,503,484 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $909,794,000 after purchasing an additional 1,447,700 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 6.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,042,842 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $614,715,000 after purchasing an additional 194,337 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 2.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,481,652 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $501,343,000 after purchasing an additional 54,450 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 3.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,314,301 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $467,535,000 after acquiring an additional 83,185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 4.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,330,004 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $268,688,000 after acquiring an additional 55,992 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vulcan Materials

In other Vulcan Materials news, insider Stanley G. Bass sold 8,310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.68, for a total transaction of $2,091,460.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 29,311 shares in the company, valued at $7,376,992.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Stanley G. Bass sold 8,310 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.68, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Randy L. Pigg sold 307 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.27, for a total value of $78,367.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $483,991.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,017 shares of company stock worth $3,344,741 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VMC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $263.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Vulcan Materials from $236.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Wolfe Research downgraded Vulcan Materials from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Vulcan Materials from $264.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $208.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.00.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Vulcan Materials stock opened at $258.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.04, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.83. Vulcan Materials has a one year low of $166.43 and a one year high of $276.58. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $264.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 3.17 and a quick ratio of 2.39.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 11.99%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.43 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

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

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.