Lazard Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Position in MYR Group, Inc. $MYRG

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of MYR Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYRG) by 699.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,950 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 65,571 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in MYR Group were worth $21,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MYRG. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in MYR Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,319,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in MYR Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 8,556 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of MYR Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 2,837 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $620,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of MYR Group by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 164 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of MYR Group by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 11,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,530,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 88.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Donald C.I. Lucky sold 14,675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.53, for a total transaction of $6,596,852.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 5,579 shares in the company, valued at $2,507,927.87. This trade represents a 72.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth Michael Hartwick sold 3,500 shares of MYR Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.50, for a total value of $1,576,750.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,393,265.50. The trade was a 15.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MYRG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research cut MYR Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $392.00 price target on shares of MYR Group in a report on Friday, July 10th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of MYR Group in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of MYR Group in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $503.00 price objective on shares of MYR Group in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $389.83.

MYR Group Price Performance

MYRG opened at $340.72 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $437.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $347.91. The firm has a market cap of $5.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.57 and a beta of 1.31. MYR Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $171.51 and a twelve month high of $503.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

MYR Group (NASDAQ:MYRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.90. MYR Group had a net margin of 3.71% and a return on equity of 22.14%. The firm had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $932.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that MYR Group, Inc. will post 11.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About MYR Group

MYR Group Inc (NASDAQ: MYRG) is a specialty electrical contractor that provides a broad array of construction, maintenance and emergency restoration services to utility, commercial, industrial and renewable energy customers. The company was formed in 1995 through the consolidation of several regional specialty contractors and has since expanded its capabilities to support complex transmission and distribution projects, substation installations, communication and wireless infrastructure, as well as renewable power interconnections.

Through a network of operating subsidiaries, MYR Group delivers turnkey solutions that include overhead and underground line construction, substation and switchgear installation, substation maintenance and testing, and storm restoration services.