Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

VMI has been the subject of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. DA Davidson cut Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

Valmont Industries Stock Down 12.5 %

VMI opened at $285.69 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $332.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $318.77. The company has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63 and a beta of 0.98. Valmont Industries has a 1 year low of $202.01 and a 1 year high of $379.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.07.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.21. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 23.15%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Valmont Industries will post 18.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a boost from Valmont Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 2.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,884 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,416,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 366.9% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 3,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $899,000 after buying an additional 2,436 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 7.3% during the third quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $566,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 9.6% during the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 288,633 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,689,000 after purchasing an additional 25,237 shares during the period. Finally, Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 69.9% during the third quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 7,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,113,000 after purchasing an additional 2,997 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valmont Industries Company Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.