EFG International AG Takes Position in Valmont Industries, Inc. $VMI

EFG International AG bought a new position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 9,577 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,536,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Valmont Industries during the second quarter valued at $1,141,369,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 422,997 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $164,009,000 after purchasing an additional 32,382 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 369,059 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $148,509,000 after purchasing an additional 12,480 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 290,948 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $112,809,000 after purchasing an additional 8,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 282,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $108,884,000 after purchasing an additional 153,418 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VMI. Weiss Ratings cut Valmont Industries from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded Valmont Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Oppenheimer set a $600.00 price objective on Valmont Industries and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Valmont Industries from $645.00 to $678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Valmont Industries currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $587.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valmont Industries

In other news, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 800 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 2,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,388,475. This trade represents a 22.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO John L. Schwietz purchased 208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $486.14 per share, with a total value of $101,117.12. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 2,992 shares in the company, valued at $1,454,530.88. This trade represents a 7.47% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Valmont Industries Trading Down 1.6%

VMI opened at $473.67 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.35. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $360.41 and a 12 month high of $585.71. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $521.39 and a 200 day moving average of $486.20.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $6.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 25.57% and a net margin of 11.70%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.88 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 23.08 EPS for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th will be given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Valmont Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.99%.

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.