Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $131.88 and last traded at $132.1940, with a volume of 17965 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $130.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on GVA. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Granite Construction in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Granite Construction from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Granite Construction from $109.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research raised Granite Construction from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on Granite Construction from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.00.

Granite Construction Stock Up 0.5%

The company has a market cap of $5.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.27 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Granite Construction Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Granite Construction’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.99%.

Insider Activity at Granite Construction

In other news, Director Celeste Beeks Mastin sold 7,614 shares of Granite Construction stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.23, for a total value of $801,221.22. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,073,977.38. This trade represents a 42.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Granite Construction by 73.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 21,379 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,612,000 after acquiring an additional 9,038 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in shares of Granite Construction during the 1st quarter worth about $207,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Granite Construction by 21.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 168,859 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $12,732,000 after purchasing an additional 29,428 shares during the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Granite Construction during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $248,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in Granite Construction by 64.7% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,110 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the last quarter.

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.