Bernzott Capital Advisors Sells 4,384 Shares of Granite Construction Incorporated $GVA

Bernzott Capital Advisors lowered its position in shares of Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA) by 7.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,682 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 4,384 shares during the quarter. Granite Construction makes up about 3.1% of Bernzott Capital Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Bernzott Capital Advisors owned approximately 0.12% of Granite Construction worth $6,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its holdings in Granite Construction by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 6,378 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $736,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in Granite Construction by 30.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 381 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Granite Construction by 4.5% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,813 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Granite Construction by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,978 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in Granite Construction by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 22,224 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,563,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Bradley Jay Williams sold 6,734 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $949,494.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,041 shares in the company, valued at $992,781. This trade represents a 48.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael G. Tatusko sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 29,787 shares in the company, valued at $4,199,967. This represents a 20.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on GVA shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Granite Construction from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Granite Construction in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $170.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $139.00 price objective (down from $141.00) on shares of Granite Construction in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Granite Construction from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Stephens started coverage on shares of Granite Construction in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $180.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Granite Construction presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.00.

Granite Construction Stock Down 12.2%

NYSE:GVA opened at $126.08 on Friday. Granite Construction Incorporated has a 1 year low of $89.80 and a 1 year high of $162.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $141.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.12. The stock has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.33 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

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

Granite Construction Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Granite Construction’s dividend payout ratio is 14.99%.

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.