John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Sells 17,350 Shares of Granite Construction Incorporated $GVA

Key Points

• John G Ullman & Associates reduced its Granite Construction stake by 23.1% in the first quarter, selling 17,350 shares and leaving it with 57,755 shares worth about $6.9 million.
• Granite Construction beat expectations in its latest quarter, reporting EPS of $0.26 versus an expected loss and revenue of $912.47 million, up 30.4% year over year.
• Insiders and analysts were active on the name: two SVPs sold shares in June, while Wall Street’s consensus remains Moderate Buy with an average price target of $161.

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. decreased its position in Granite Construction Incorporated (NYSE:GVA - Free Report) by 23.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,755 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 17,350 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. owned about 0.13% of Granite Construction worth $6,924,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GVA. Independent Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Granite Construction during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $766,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Granite Construction by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 23,745 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,847,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Granite Construction by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 287,744 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $34,495,000 after buying an additional 22,162 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Granite Construction by 22,963.3% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 65,961 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,907,000 after buying an additional 65,675 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abel Hall LLC raised its holdings in Granite Construction by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $432,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GVA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Granite Construction from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Zacks Research upgraded Granite Construction to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Stephens initiated coverage on Granite Construction in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $180.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised Granite Construction from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on Granite Construction in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. One equities 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.00.

Insider Transactions at Granite Construction

In other Granite Construction news, SVP Bradley Jay Williams sold 6,734 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 value 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. The trade was a 48.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael G. Tatusko sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $1,057,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 29,787 shares in the company, valued at $4,199,967. The trade was a 20.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Granite Construction Stock Performance

NYSE GVA opened at $124.41 on Friday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $139.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $130.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Granite Construction Incorporated has a 1 year low of $89.80 and a 1 year high of $162.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a PE ratio of 35.85 and a beta of 1.29.

Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.77) by $1.03. Granite Construction had a return on equity of 24.90% and a net margin of 3.99%.The company had revenue of $912.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $782.26 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.01 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 30.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Granite Construction Incorporated will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Granite Construction Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Granite Construction's payout ratio is presently 14.99%.

Granite Construction 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.

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