B. Riley Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Stock

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) had its price objective increased by research analysts at B. Riley Financial from $300.00 to $315.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the construction company’s stock. B. Riley Financial‘s price target points to a potential upside of 9.47% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on VMC. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $349.00 to $326.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vulcan Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $345.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Vulcan Materials from $290.00 to $281.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $309.61.

Vulcan Materials Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:VMC traded up $6.49 on Monday, hitting $287.74. 391,166 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,175,201. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $255.77 and its 200 day moving average is $280.40. The company has a market capitalization of $36.93 billion, a PE ratio of 34.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.99. Vulcan Materials has a 1-year low of $237.03 and a 1-year high of $331.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.43.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The construction company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.02. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 13.03% and a net margin of 13.77%. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vulcan Materials news, Director J. Hill sold 14,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.17, for a total value of $3,866,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,075,579.53. The trade was a 19.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP David P. Clement sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.10, for a total value of $570,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 6,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,914,731.60. The trade was a 22.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vulcan Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth about $2,868,444,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $688,580,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $451,119,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 1.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,346,422 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $366,592,000 after purchasing an additional 24,187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stockbridge Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials during the second quarter worth $314,470,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is a producer and distributor of construction materials used in infrastructure, commercial, residential and industrial projects. The company is the largest producer of construction aggregates in the United States, including crushed stone, sand and gravel.

In addition to aggregates, Vulcan Materials produces asphalt mix, ready-mixed concrete and cement. Its materials are used in roads, bridges, airports, commercial buildings, homes and other construction applications.