Sterling Infrastructure (NASDAQ:STRL) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

Sterling Infrastructure (NASDAQ:STRL) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Sterling Infrastructure in a report on Monday, December 29th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Sterling Infrastructure from $355.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sterling Infrastructure from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $460.00.

Sterling Infrastructure Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:STRL opened at $317.41 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $336.41 and a 200 day moving average of $310.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $9.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.50. Sterling Infrastructure has a 52 week low of $96.34 and a 52 week high of $419.14.

Sterling Infrastructure (NASDAQ:STRL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 3rd. The construction company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $403.58 million for the quarter. Sterling Infrastructure had a return on equity of 29.81% and a net margin of 14.14%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sterling Infrastructure will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sterling Infrastructure declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Sterling Infrastructure

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Sterling Infrastructure by 62.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,131,751 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $261,129,000 after acquiring an additional 433,311 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Sterling Infrastructure by 82.7% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 735,910 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $169,797,000 after purchasing an additional 333,013 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sterling Infrastructure by 84.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 654,096 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $222,184,000 after purchasing an additional 299,724 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Sterling Infrastructure by 83.5% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 606,236 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $205,926,000 after purchasing an additional 275,830 shares during the period. Finally, Amanah Holdings Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Sterling Infrastructure during the second quarter worth about $44,527,000. 80.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sterling Infrastructure Company Profile

Sterling Infrastructure, Inc (NASDAQ: STRL) is a diversified manufacturer and distributor of essential infrastructure products serving municipal, utility and industrial customers across North America. Through its network of wholly owned subsidiaries, the company designs, engineers and produces a wide range of cast and fabricated solutions tailored to the needs of the waterworks, natural gas, telecommunications, electric, traffic safety and parks & recreation markets.

The company’s product portfolio encompasses ductile iron and composite fittings, valve boxes, manhole frames and covers, water and gas meter sets, street light poles and mounting accessories, traffic sign posts with breakaway systems, bollards and related system components.