New York Life Investment Management LLC Acquires Shares of 1,841 Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

New York Life Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,841 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $741,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $523,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 64.6% in the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 595 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $299,000. Finally, Ethic Inc. grew its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 2,841 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,143,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $492.34, for a total transaction of $8,615,950.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 112,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,294,213.06. This represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VMI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Valmont Industries in a research report on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $500.33.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Shares of VMI stock opened at $503.81 on Thursday. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $305.07 and a one year high of $528.49. The company’s 50-day moving average is $446.31 and its 200 day moving average is $434.90. The company has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.97 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.38.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.79. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 24.94%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.85 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.32 EPS. Valmont Industries’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 17.10%.

Valmont Industries Company 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.