Elwood Capital Partners LP Takes Position in Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Elwood Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,750 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $965,000. Vulcan Materials makes up about 0.9% of Elwood Capital Partners LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,352,507 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,206,355,000 after acquiring an additional 90,157 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 13.9% during the fourth 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 increased its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,281,102 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,322,546,000 after purchasing an additional 65,163 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,348,418 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $859,171,000 after purchasing an additional 36,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Vulcan Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $380,369,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of VMC opened at $233.82 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $253.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $260.78. Vulcan Materials has a 12-month low of $215.08 and a 12-month high of $298.31. 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 firm has a market cap of $30.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 28.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $301.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vulcan Materials from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $302.67.

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.