Sentry Investment Management LLC Sells 115 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Sentry Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 23.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 383 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 115 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $88,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,352,507 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,206,355,000 after buying an additional 90,157 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,062,201 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,559,380,000 after acquiring an additional 741,631 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,348,418 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $859,171,000 after acquiring an additional 36,833 shares during the period. Stockbridge Partners LLC lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,746,482 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $449,248,000 after acquiring an additional 177,918 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $380,369,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

VMC opened at $266.08 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $254.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $259.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $35.15 billion, a PE ratio of 38.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.84. Vulcan Materials has a 1 year low of $215.08 and a 1 year high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.80%.

Insider Activity at Vulcan Materials

In related news, SVP David P. Clement sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total transaction of $405,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,832 shares in the company, valued at $764,640. This trade represents a 34.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VMC shares. Wolfe Research raised Vulcan Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded 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 note on Wednesday, March 19th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $302.91.

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.