Insider Buying: Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) CFO Purchases $101,117.12 in Stock

Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) CFO John Schwietz acquired 208 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $486.14 per share, for a total transaction of $101,117.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,454,530.88. This represents a 7.47% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VMI traded down $12.91 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $481.90. 102,839 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 201,835. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.55. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $353.41 and a 52-week high of $585.71. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $538.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $479.22. The company has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.33.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.34. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 11.70%.The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.88 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.96 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is 11.99%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 225.1% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 67,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $19,300,000 after buying an additional 46,825 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 59,127 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $16,873,000 after acquiring an additional 4,676 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries in the 1st quarter valued at about $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Valmont Industries by 3.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 72,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,692,000 after acquiring an additional 2,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 223.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on VMI. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Valmont Industries from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Valmont Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price target on Valmont Industries and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $587.00.

About Valmont Industries

Valmont Industries, Inc (NYSE: VMI) is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in infrastructure and agricultural products. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, the company engages in the design, production and distribution of engineered products that support water management, power transmission, lighting and traffic infrastructure. Valmont’s solutions range from center-pivot and lateral-move irrigation systems to utility poles, transmission towers, lighting structures and highway traffic signal support structures.

The company operates through several core business segments.