Empirical Asset Management LLC Purchases 1,185 Shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC)

Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) by 98.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,387 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vulcan Materials were worth $614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 3.6% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 27,803 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,914,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Vulcan Materials by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 10,491 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,609,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vulcan Materials by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 10,392 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,584,000 after buying an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd increased its position in Vulcan Materials by 100.2% during the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,944 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $483,000 after buying an additional 973 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Vulcan Materials by 38.2% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,812 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,186,000 after buying an additional 3,539 shares during the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vulcan Materials Stock Performance

VMC stock opened at $270.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $35.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.02. Vulcan Materials has a 1 year low of $219.73 and a 1 year high of $298.31. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $272.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $258.85.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.34 by ($0.12). Vulcan Materials had a return on equity of 11.88% and a net margin of 11.43%. The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vulcan Materials will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VMC shares. Raymond James cut their target price on Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $245.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $349.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Vulcan Materials from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $301.18.

About Vulcan Materials

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.