Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. DA Davidson cut Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $380.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, William Blair cut shares of Valmont Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st.

Valmont Industries Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:VMI traded up $3.62 on Friday, reaching $288.99. 131,184 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 147,609. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $5.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.82 and a beta of 0.98. Valmont Industries has a 12 month low of $202.01 and a 12 month high of $379.22. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $327.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $320.68.

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Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Valmont Industries had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 23.15%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.18 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Valmont Industries will post 18.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.68 per share. This is an increase from Valmont Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. Valmont Industries's payout ratio is currently 15.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valmont Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Valmont Industries in the fourth quarter worth $67,822,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 57.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 407,308 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $123,512,000 after buying an additional 148,811 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Valmont Industries by 2,077.0% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 58,779 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $18,026,000 after buying an additional 56,079 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Valmont Industries during the fourth quarter valued at about $14,180,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Valmont Industries by 16.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 247,714 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $71,825,000 after acquiring an additional 34,772 shares in the last quarter. 87.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.