Vontobel Holding Ltd. Trims Stake in Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI - Free Report) by 47.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,628 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,214 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Valmont Industries were worth $1,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VMI. Foundry Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the third quarter worth approximately $4,158,000. Covea Finance grew its holdings in shares of Valmont Industries by 29.9% during the 4th quarter. Covea Finance now owns 15,200 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,661,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Valmont Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at $466,000. De Lisle Partners LLP raised its position in Valmont Industries by 44.6% in the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 18,800 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,454,000 after purchasing an additional 5,800 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in Valmont Industries by 12.9% in the third quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 208,645 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $60,497,000 after purchasing an additional 23,765 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.84% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mogens C. Bay sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.92, for a total transaction of $6,978,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 131,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,963,231.60. This represents a 13.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Valmont Industries Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of VMI stock traded down $13.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $349.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 113,467 shares, compared to its average volume of 122,122. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.07. Valmont Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $202.01 and a 52-week high of $379.22. The stock has a market cap of $7.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $323.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $311.72.

Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Valmont Industries had a return on equity of 23.15% and a net margin of 8.55%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.18 EPS. Research analysts predict that Valmont Industries, Inc. will post 18.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Valmont Industries Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. This is a boost from Valmont Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Valmont Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson lowered Valmont Industries from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $380.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Valmont Industries from $387.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Valmont Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday.

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.