GSA Capital Partners LLP Invests $1.41 Million in Granite Construction Incorporated $GVA

GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,902 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,407,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GVA. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Granite Construction by 512.8% during the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 239 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 200 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. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Granite Construction in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Granite Construction by 1,417.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 516 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Granite Construction during the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on GVA. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Granite Construction from $139.00 to $119.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Stephens started coverage on Granite Construction in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $180.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Granite Construction from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised Granite Construction to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Granite Construction from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Granite Construction has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.50.

Granite Construction Stock Performance

Granite Construction stock opened at $126.80 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $134.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of -29.42 and a beta of 1.33. Granite Construction Incorporated has a 1-year low of $97.26 and a 1-year high of $162.08.

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

Granite Construction Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. Granite Construction’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -12.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Michael G. Tatusko sold 7,500 shares of Granite Construction stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $1,057,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 29,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,199,967. This trade represents a 20.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John Timothy Romer acquired 375 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $143.65 per share, with a total value of $53,868.75. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $402,363.65. This trade represents a 15.46% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 1,150 shares of company stock worth $156,636. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.