Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the six research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $525.25.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Valmont Industries from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Zacks Research upgraded Valmont Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised Valmont Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $497.00 to $541.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd.

Valmont Industries Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of VMI stock opened at $532.47 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $10.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.34. Valmont Industries has a one year low of $316.56 and a one year high of $548.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $480.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $447.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 1.59.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $5.51 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $994.85 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.32 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Valmont Industries will post 22.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.10%.

Insider Activity at Valmont Industries

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $492.34, for a total value of $8,615,950.00. Following the sale, the director 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at $739,000. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in Valmont Industries by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 85,346 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,336,000 after purchasing an additional 10,518 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth $1,749,000. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $581,000. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Valmont Industries by 838.7% in the third quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 32,837 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,732,000 after buying an additional 29,339 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valmont Industries

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.