United States Lime & Minerals (NASDAQ:USLM) Hits New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

United States Lime & Minerals, Inc. (NASDAQ:USLM) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $149.67 and last traded at $149.67, with a volume of 36821 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded United States Lime & Minerals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd.

United States Lime & Minerals Stock Up 7.5 %

The company has a market capitalization of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.38 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $107.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.18.

United States Lime & Minerals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.13%. United States Lime & Minerals’s payout ratio is currently 5.80%.

Insider Activity at United States Lime & Minerals

In other United States Lime & Minerals news, VP Nathan O’neill sold 1,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.73, for a total transaction of $244,527.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,880 shares in the company, valued at $1,101,072.40. This represents a 18.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United States Lime & Minerals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of USLM. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of United States Lime & Minerals in the first quarter worth about $607,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in United States Lime & Minerals by 2.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 114,041 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,526 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in United States Lime & Minerals in the first quarter valued at about $473,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in United States Lime & Minerals by 958.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 10,489 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 9,498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in United States Lime & Minerals during the second quarter valued at approximately $342,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.12% of the company’s stock.

About United States Lime & Minerals

United States Lime & Minerals, Inc manufactures and supplies lime and limestone products in the United States. It extracts limestone from open-pit quarries and an underground mine, and processes it as pulverized limestone, quicklime, hydrated lime, and lime slurry. The company supplies its products primarily to the construction customers, including highway, road, and building contractors; industrial customers, such as paper and glass manufacturers; environmental customers comprising municipal sanitation and water treatment facilities, and flue gas treatment processes; oil and gas services companies; roof shingle manufacturers; and poultry producers.