Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Price Target Cut to $273.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) had its price target decreased by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $300.00 to $273.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the construction company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price suggests a potential upside of 13.68% from the company’s previous close.

VMC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Vulcan Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Vulcan Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $290.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $287.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.75.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of Vulcan Materials stock traded down $4.38 on Wednesday, hitting $240.15. 254,598 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,123,626. Vulcan Materials has a 52 week low of $215.08 and a 52 week high of $298.31. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $259.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 1.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.41. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 EPS. Research analysts expect that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Vulcan Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $380,369,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Vulcan Materials by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,332,431,000 after acquiring an additional 884,580 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Vulcan Materials by 28,529.4% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 523,631 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,694,000 after purchasing an additional 521,802 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 239.8% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 739,003 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $190,094,000 after purchasing an additional 521,508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 54.1% during the fourth quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $329,769,000 after purchasing an additional 450,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.39% of the company’s stock.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

Vulcan Materials Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies construction aggregates primarily in the United States. It operates through four segments: Aggregates, Asphalt, Concrete, and Calcium. The company provides crushed stones, sand and gravel, sand, and other aggregates; and related products and services that are applied in construction and maintenance of highways, streets, and other public works, as well as in the construction of housing and commercial, industrial, and other nonresidential facilities.