Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Acquires 7,741 Shares of Vulcan Materials Company $VMC

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. grew its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) by 30.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 33,494 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,741 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $9,553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.3% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,293,316 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $397,795,000 after acquiring an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 67.8% in the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 14,320 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,405,000 after purchasing an additional 5,787 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $12,834,000. Interval Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 82.9% in the 3rd quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 152,645 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,957,000 after buying an additional 69,189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, London & Capital Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 26.4% in the third quarter. London & Capital Asset Management Ltd now owns 108,087 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,248,000 after buying an additional 22,545 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Trading Up 2.1%

VMC stock opened at $286.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 2.59. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $282.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $290.02. Vulcan Materials Company has a 52 week low of $252.35 and a 52 week high of $331.09. The company has a market capitalization of $37.14 billion, a PE ratio of 34.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.05.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The construction company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.25. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 earnings per share. Vulcan Materials’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials Company will post 9.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is presently 24.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on VMC shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $296.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $330.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Berenberg Bank set a $283.00 price target on shares of Vulcan Materials and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $322.00 to $321.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vulcan Materials has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $326.92.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company’s primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.