The Goldman Sachs Group Reaffirms “Sell” Rating for Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA)

Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA)‘s stock had its “sell” rating restated by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $139.00 target price on the construction company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $141.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 13.07% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on GVA. Oppenheimer started coverage on Granite Construction in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Stephens began coverage on Granite Construction in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Granite Construction from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday. Zacks Research raised Granite Construction to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Granite Construction from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Granite Construction has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.00.

Granite Construction Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GVA opened at $122.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.43 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $141.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.07. Granite Construction has a 12 month low of $89.80 and a 12 month high of $162.08.

Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.77) by $1.03. The firm had revenue of $912.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $782.26 million. Granite Construction had a return on equity of 24.90% and a net margin of 3.99%.Granite Construction’s quarterly revenue was up 30.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.01 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Granite Construction will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Granite Construction

In other news, SVP Bradley Jay Williams sold 6,734 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $949,494.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 7,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $992,781. This represents a 48.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael G. Tatusko sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 20.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Granite Construction

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Granite Construction in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Granite Construction during the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Granite Construction by 30.9% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 381 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Granite Construction in the 4th quarter worth $56,000.

Granite Construction News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Granite Construction this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reiterated a sell rating on Granite Construction and lowered its price target to $139 from $141, signaling limited upside and a more cautious view on the company’s near-term prospects.
• Negative Sentiment: Granite Construction was also downgraded by another analyst, adding to the pressure on the stock and reinforcing concerns about the infrastructure outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: The company announced redemption of its 2028 convertible notes, a balance-sheet event that should reduce future debt obligations but is unlikely to be the main driver of trading today. Granite Construction Announces Redemption of 2028 Convertible Notes

Granite Construction Company Profile

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.