American Century Companies Inc. Grows Position in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 58.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,006 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,332 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.27% of Valmont Industries worth $16,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $335,000. Summit Global Investments purchased a new stake in Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $737,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Valmont Industries by 193.2% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 13,078 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,011,000 after purchasing an additional 8,617 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter worth $161,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 2,292 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $703,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on VMI. StockNews.com lowered Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 29th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. DA Davidson lowered shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $380.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, William Blair downgraded shares of Valmont Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st.

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Valmont Industries Stock Down 4.5 %

NYSE VMI traded down $12.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $265.58. 267,502 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 147,717. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50 day moving average of $323.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $320.42. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $202.01 and a 52-week high of $379.22.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.63 by $0.21. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 23.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.18 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Valmont Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio is 15.83%.

Valmont Industries Profile

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.