Kier Group (LON:KIE) Trading 6.6% Higher - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Kier Group's shares increased by 6.6% during mid-day trading, reaching GBX 211 ($2.88), driven by a significant trading volume rise of 51% from the average.
• Analysts from Berenberg Bank raised their price target for Kier Group from GBX 210 to GBX 225, maintaining a "buy" rating, indicating positive growth expectations.
• The company reported an earnings per share of GBX 21.60 for the last quarter, with upcoming projections suggesting a total of approximately 20.49 EPS for the current year.

Kier Group plc (LON:KIE - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 6.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as GBX 211 ($2.86) and last traded at GBX 204.69 ($2.77). Approximately 3,934,629 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 51% from the average daily volume of 2,610,104 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 192 ($2.60).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Berenberg Bank raised their target price on shares of Kier Group from GBX 225 to GBX 240 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of GBX 240.

Kier Group Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day simple moving average is GBX 199.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 169.60. The company has a market capitalization of £937.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2,268.42, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 302.83, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Kier Group (LON:KIE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported GBX 21.60 EPS for the quarter. Kier Group had a net margin of 1.09% and a return on equity of 8.23%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Kier Group plc will post 20.4913295 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Kier Group

In related news, insider Simon Kesterton sold 350,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 204, for a total transaction of £714,000. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Kier Group Company Profile

Kier Group is a leading infrastructure services, construction and property group based in the UK. Our purpose is to sustainably deliver infrastructure which is vital to the UK with a vision is to be the UK's leading infrastructure services and construction company. We operate through three segments; Infrastructure Services, Construction and Property.