433 Shares in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Bought by Westpac Banking Corp

Westpac Banking Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 433 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 0.6% in the 4th 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. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,281,102 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,322,546,000 after purchasing an additional 65,163 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,348,418 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $859,171,000 after purchasing an additional 36,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $380,369,000. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.58.

Vulcan Materials Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:VMC opened at $230.98 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 1.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $250.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $260.40. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.41. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is presently 28.61%.

Vulcan Materials Profile

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.