Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI Stake Lessened by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) by 84.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 6,822 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 36,511 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $2,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Valmont Industries in the first quarter worth about $37,000. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 800 shares of Valmont Industries stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $396,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,805 shares in the company, valued at $1,388,475. This trade represents a 22.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John L. Schwietz acquired 208 shares of Valmont Industries stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $486.14 per share, with a total value of $101,117.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 2,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,454,530.88. This trade represents a 7.47% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VMI has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price objective on Valmont Industries and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Valmont Industries from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised Valmont Industries from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valmont Industries currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $587.00.

Valmont Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VMI opened at $482.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $535.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $480.26. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $353.41 and a 52-week high of $585.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.33.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 11.70%.The business’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 22.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.99%.

Valmont Industries 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.