Martingale Asset Management L P Cuts Position in Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF)

Martingale Asset Management L P cut its stake in Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,804 shares of the company’s stock after selling 582 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P’s holdings in Knife River were worth $1,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in Knife River by 830.7% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,101,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,965,000 after purchasing an additional 983,223 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Knife River by 1,200.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 887,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,224,000 after acquiring an additional 819,439 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Knife River during the fourth quarter worth about $66,631,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Knife River by 83.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 879,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $89,422,000 after purchasing an additional 400,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of Knife River in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,745,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.11% of the company’s stock.

Knife River Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KNF opened at $93.47 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Knife River Co. has a fifty-two week low of $66.13 and a fifty-two week high of $108.83. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $93.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.94. The firm has a market cap of $5.29 billion, a PE ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.97.

Knife River (NYSE:KNF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $657.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $655.80 million. Knife River had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 14.82%. Sell-side analysts expect that Knife River Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KNF. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Knife River in a report on Monday, March 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Knife River from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Knife River in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Knife River has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $110.40.

About Knife River

Knife River Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides aggregates- led construction materials and contracting services in the United States. It operates through Pacific, Northwest, Mountain, Central, and Energy Services segments. The company mines, processes, and sells construction aggregates, including crushed stone and sand, and gravel; and produces and sells asphalt and ready-mix concrete.