South Dakota Investment Council Buys Shares of 1,700 Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

South Dakota Investment Council bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 188.9% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 360.0% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 37.3% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VMI opened at $209.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.47. The company has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.07 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $217.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.99. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $188.63 and a 52-week high of $303.57.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 20.69%. The business had revenue of $1,000.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.46 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VMI. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $290.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $249.00 price target on shares of Valmont Industries in a report on Monday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valmont Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.00.

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.