Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $352.88 and last traded at $352.26, with a volume of 14684 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $342.09.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VMI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Valmont Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Valmont Industries from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Valmont Industries from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $310.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $285.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company has a market capitalization of $7.02 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82 and a beta of 1.02.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $4.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 7.38% and a return on equity of 23.10%. Valmont Industries’s revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. Valmont Industries’s payout ratio is 16.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Valmont Industries news, VP R Andrew Massey sold 3,977 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $1,252,755.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,963,520. This represents a 29.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.48, for a total transaction of $5,380,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 154,730 shares in the company, valued at $48,968,950.40. This represents a 9.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,977 shares of company stock worth $6,971,695. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in Valmont Industries by 2,060.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 292.4% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $929,000 after purchasing an additional 2,523 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 14.4% in the second quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 184,880 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $50,740,000 after purchasing an additional 23,275 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC purchased a new position in Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth about $4,158,000. Finally, Ecofi Investissements SA acquired a new stake in Valmont Industries in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,238,000. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Valmont Industries

Valmont Industries, Inc operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications.