Deane Retirement Strategies Inc. Has $1.53 Million Stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Deane Retirement Strategies Inc. decreased its position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 49.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,746 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,651 shares during the period. Deane Retirement Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $1,531,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Achmea Investment Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VMC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research cut Vulcan Materials from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Vulcan Materials in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $208.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $236.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $260.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. Finally, Raymond James upped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vulcan Materials news, VP Randy L. Pigg sold 307 shares of Vulcan Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.27, for a total transaction of $78,367.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $483,991.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.48, for a total transaction of $312,576.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $85,958.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Randy L. Pigg sold 307 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.27, for a total value of $78,367.89. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $483,991.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,017 shares of company stock valued at $3,344,741. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE:VMC traded up $1.07 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $273.86. 178,116 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 820,603. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $250.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $226.01. Vulcan Materials has a one year low of $162.00 and a one year high of $276.58. The company has a market cap of $36.22 billion, a PE ratio of 39.08, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.83.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 16th. The construction company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.06. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 11.99%. The company had revenue of $1.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.36%.

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.