Weiss Asset Management LP Makes New Investment in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC – Get Rating) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 37,225 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,871,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 13.8% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 241,023 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $34,249,000 after acquiring an additional 29,276 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.3% in the third quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 35,976 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,674,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 4.8% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,507 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,496,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.3% in the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 21,228 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,348,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 16.7% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,683 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $265,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. 90.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 3.1 %

VMC opened at $161.02 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $179.90 and its 200-day moving average is $173.01. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $137.54 and a 52-week high of $197.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 10.09%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. Analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 5.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 6th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 3rd. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is 39.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $194.00 to $211.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Seaport Res Ptn reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $186.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 25th. Finally, Atlantic Securities cut shares of Vulcan Materials from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $180.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $204.25.

Vulcan Materials Profile

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Vulcan Materials Co engages in the provision of basic materials and supply for the infrastructure and construction industries. It operates through the following business segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The Aggregates segment produces and sells asphalt mix and ready-mixed concrete primarily in its mid-Atlantic, Georgia, Southwestern, Tennessee, and Western markets.