Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) Upgraded to “Overweight” at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) was upgraded by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm presently has a $285.00 price target on the construction company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $290.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price points to a potential upside of 19.42% from the stock’s current price.

VMC has been the subject of several other reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Vulcan Materials from $269.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $325.00 to $301.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials from $298.00 to $295.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Vulcan Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $302.67.

Vulcan Materials Price Performance

Shares of VMC opened at $238.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $31.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.80. Vulcan Materials has a twelve month low of $215.08 and a twelve month high of $298.31. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a 50 day moving average of $256.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $260.34.

Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Vulcan Materials had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 12.83%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Vulcan Materials will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VMC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Vulcan Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $380,369,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 19.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,320,570 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,332,431,000 after purchasing an additional 884,580 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 28,529.4% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 523,631 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $134,694,000 after purchasing an additional 521,802 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Vulcan Materials by 239.8% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 739,003 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $190,094,000 after purchasing an additional 521,508 shares during the period. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Vulcan Materials by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,001 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $329,769,000 after buying an additional 450,000 shares in the last quarter. 90.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vulcan Materials Company Profile

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.