AXQ Capital LP Invests $658,000 in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $658,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 12.5% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Valmont Industries by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,950 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,211,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,538 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $472,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 249 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,853 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,795,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

Valmont Industries Trading Down 12.5 %

Shares of VMI opened at $285.69 on Friday. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $202.01 and a 1 year high of $379.22. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $332.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $319.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63 and a beta of 0.98.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.63 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 23.15%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.18 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $0.68 dividend. This is an increase from Valmont Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is currently 15.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VMI. DA Davidson lowered shares of Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com cut Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. William Blair lowered Valmont Industries from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

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.