Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the six analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $158.50.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Granite Construction from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Granite Construction to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Granite Construction in a report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Granite Construction from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Granite Construction from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th.

Granite Construction Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:GVA opened at $127.69 on Tuesday. Granite Construction has a 1 year low of $97.26 and a 1 year high of $162.08. The company has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a PE ratio of -29.63 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $134.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. Granite Construction had a positive return on equity of 27.83% and a negative net margin of 3.32%.Granite Construction’s quarterly revenue was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Granite Construction will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Granite Construction Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Granite Construction’s dividend payout ratio is currently -12.06%.

Insider Transactions at Granite Construction

In related news, SVP Bradley Jay Williams sold 6,734 shares of Granite Construction stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total value of $949,494.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $992,781. This trade represents a 48.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael G. Tatusko sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total value of $1,057,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 29,787 shares in the company, valued at $4,199,967. This represents a 20.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased a total of 1,150 shares of company stock worth $156,636 over the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Granite Construction

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its stake in shares of Granite Construction by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 6,378 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $736,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Granite Construction by 30.9% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 381 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Granite Construction by 3.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $572,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Granite Construction by 4.5% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,813 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Granite Construction by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,978 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period.

About Granite Construction

Granite Construction Inc is a publicly traded heavy civil contractor and construction materials producer based in Watsonville, California. The company specializes in delivering large-scale infrastructure projects for government and private clients, focusing on the development, rehabilitation and maintenance of transportation, water resource and industrial facilities. Its turnkey solutions span the full project lifecycle, from preconstruction and design-build to construction management and facilities maintenance.

In its construction segment, Granite undertakes highway and bridge building, airport runway and taxiway construction, marine terminal and port improvements, dam and reservoir projects, transit systems and underground utilities.