Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Buys 56 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 352 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $91,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Vulcan Materials by 138.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 186 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 208 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VMC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James dropped their price target 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. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vulcan Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $302.67.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Vulcan Materials stock opened at $232.90 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $253.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $260.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.00, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 1.83. Vulcan Materials has a 52-week low of $215.08 and a 52-week high of $298.31.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.41. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. This is a positive change from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Vulcan Materials’s payout ratio is presently 28.61%.

Vulcan Materials Company 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.