Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Holdings Trimmed by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its holdings in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,162 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,300 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.07% of Vulcan Materials worth $22,935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VMC. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised 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 purchasing an additional 741,631 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 1.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,281,102 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,322,546,000 after buying an additional 65,163 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 2.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,660,931 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $916,807,000 after buying an additional 78,271 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,311,585 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $826,644,000 after acquiring an additional 33,061 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stockbridge Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,568,564 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $392,815,000 after acquiring an additional 137,365 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VMC shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of Vulcan Materials in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $301.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.00.

Vulcan Materials Stock Down 2.3 %

VMC stock opened at $252.68 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $266.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $261.44. The company has a market cap of $33.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.89, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.84. Vulcan Materials has a 12-month low of $225.36 and a 12-month high of $298.31. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is currently 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.