Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $309.86 and last traded at $309.86, with a volume of 5377 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $303.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on VMI shares. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Valmont Industries from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $285.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.50.

Valmont Industries Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.50 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $284.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $265.12.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.04 by $0.72. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.06 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 23.30% and a net margin of 4.09%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Valmont Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valmont Industries

In other Valmont Industries news, CFO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.49, for a total transaction of $686,527.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,826,998.79. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Theodor Werner Freye sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.12, for a total value of $480,192.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,685 shares in the company, valued at $1,105,942.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Timothy P. Francis sold 2,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.49, for a total transaction of $686,527.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,471 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,826,998.79. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 117.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in Valmont Industries by 2,060.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in Valmont Industries in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 268.0% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 184 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries during the second quarter worth $52,000. 87.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.