Gotham Asset Management LLC Buys 11,847 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 302.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 15,766 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,847 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $4,055,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Vulcan Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 138.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 186 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on VMC shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Raymond James reduced their target price on Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $287.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Argus raised Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $297.45.

Vulcan Materials Trading Down 0.8%

Vulcan Materials stock opened at $266.56 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $243.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $260.41. Vulcan Materials has a 12 month low of $215.08 and a 12 month high of $298.31. The company has a market capitalization of $35.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.84.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 12.30%. Vulcan Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.80%.

About Vulcan Materials

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.