Short Interest in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Declines By 14.3%

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,020,542 shares, a decline of 14.3% from the January 29th total of 4,693,007 shares. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,263,707 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,263,707 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vulcan Materials news, President Thompson S. Baker II sold 7,135 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.81, for a total transaction of $2,146,279.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Melissa H. Anderson sold 1,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.72, for a total value of $345,329.64. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 8,937 shares of company stock worth $2,687,784 in the last quarter. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vulcan Materials

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. National Pension Service lifted its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 0.8% in the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 175,458 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,763,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,625,271 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,345,703,000 after acquiring an additional 414,828 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,824,987 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,040,914,000 after purchasing an additional 857,210 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 104.3% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 72,113 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $22,183,000 after purchasing an additional 36,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Vulcan Materials by 19.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 256,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $66,976,000 after purchasing an additional 41,504 shares during the period. 90.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VMC traded down $10.94 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $285.04. 877,913 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,130,524. Vulcan Materials has a one year low of $215.08 and a one year high of $331.09. The stock has a market cap of $37.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.10, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $304.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $297.70.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by ($0.41). The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 13.56%.The company’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vulcan Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This is a boost from Vulcan Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Vulcan Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on VMC. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vulcan Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. B. Riley Financial started coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $345.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.14.

About Vulcan Materials

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is a U.S.-based producer of construction materials that supplies the building and infrastructure markets. The company’s primary products include construction aggregates such as crushed stone, sand and gravel, as well as asphalt mixes and ready-mixed concrete. These materials are used in a wide range of projects including highways, commercial and residential construction, and public infrastructure.

Vulcan operates an integrated network of quarries, asphalt plants and concrete facilities to produce and deliver materials to contractors, municipalities and private developers.