AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Knife River Corporation $KNF

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Knife River Corporation by 21.8%, owning a total of 119,076 shares valued at approximately $10.3 million.
• Knife River received upgrades from multiple analysts, including a price target increase to $97 from Wells Fargo & Company and an "outperform" rating set by Royal Bank Of Canada at $129.
• The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.89 for the latest quarter, which was below the analysts' expectations of $1.27.

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Knife River Corporation (NYSE:KNF - Free Report) by 21.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 119,076 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,329 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.21% of Knife River worth $10,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Knife River by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 661 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its stake in Knife River by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 8,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $722,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust raised its stake in Knife River by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,567 shares of the company's stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in Knife River by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 6,631 shares of the company's stock valued at $598,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in Knife River by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 15,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,434,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 80.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on KNF. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Knife River from $96.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Knife River in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $129.00 price objective for the company. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Knife River from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $114.33.

Knife River Stock Performance

NYSE KNF opened at $78.63 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.23, a PEG ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The business's 50 day moving average is $83.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.33. Knife River Corporation has a 12-month low of $74.50 and a 12-month high of $108.83.

Knife River (NYSE:KNF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by ($0.38). The firm had revenue of $833.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $902.26 million. Knife River had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 5.20%.The business's revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.37 EPS. Knife River has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts expect that Knife River Corporation will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

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.

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