Inspire Investing LLC Sells 2,980 Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

Inspire Investing LLC decreased its position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) by 42.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,980 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $1,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 225.1% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 67,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,300,000 after purchasing an additional 46,825 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Valmont Industries by 8.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 59,127 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,873,000 after purchasing an additional 4,676 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Valmont Industries in the first quarter valued at approximately $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 3.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 72,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,692,000 after buying an additional 2,639 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 223.4% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valmont Industries Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:VMI opened at $578.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $525.13 and a 200-day moving average of $463.35. The company has a market cap of $11.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.34. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $321.21 and a one year high of $585.71.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.79. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $994.85 million. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 17.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valmont Industries

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $492.34, for a total value of $8,615,950.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 112,309 shares in the company, valued at $55,294,213.06. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on VMI shares. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Valmont Industries and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Valmont Industries from $541.00 to $645.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $573.75.

Valmont Industries Profile

Valmont Industries, Inc (NYSE: VMI) is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in infrastructure and agricultural products. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, the company engages in the design, production and distribution of engineered products that support water management, power transmission, lighting and traffic infrastructure. Valmont’s solutions range from center-pivot and lateral-move irrigation systems to utility poles, transmission towers, lighting structures and highway traffic signal support structures.

The company operates through several core business segments.