Centuri Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CTRI) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Centuri Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CTRI) was the target of a large drop in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,638,094 shares, a drop of 31.1% from the December 31st total of 3,830,030 shares. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,252,845 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,252,845 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTRI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Centuri from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Centuri in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $34.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Centuri in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Centuri from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Centuri from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Centuri has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christian Brown sold 7,108 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total transaction of $174,217.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,401.39. The trade was a 24.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn purchased 3,488,372 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.50 per share, with a total value of $74,999,998.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 14,336,044 shares in the company, valued at $308,224,946. This trade represents a 32.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centuri

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTRI. Icahn Carl C grew its holdings in shares of Centuri by 69.4% in the 3rd quarter. Icahn Carl C now owns 10,847,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,645,000 after acquiring an additional 4,443,795 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Centuri by 126.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,059,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,625,000 after purchasing an additional 4,493,955 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Centuri in the third quarter valued at approximately $78,222,000. Carronade Capital Management LP grew its stake in Centuri by 125.6% in the third quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP now owns 3,052,817 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,628,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Centuri by 77.2% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,855,064 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,442,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243,451 shares during the last quarter.

Centuri Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Centuri stock traded down $0.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $27.62. The stock had a trading volume of 1,266,043 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,060,461. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The company has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 920.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $25.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.66. Centuri has a 52 week low of $14.45 and a 52 week high of $29.01.

Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.13). Centuri had a net margin of 0.09% and a return on equity of 6.37%. The firm had revenue of $848.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $762.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.06 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Centuri will post 0.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Centuri

Centuri Construction Group, Inc (NYSE: CTRI) is a heavy civil contractor specializing in water and wastewater infrastructure projects. The company delivers end-to-end services encompassing design-build, engineering, procurement and construction for water transmission mains, wastewater force mains, treatment facilities, pump and lift stations, and stormwater management systems.

Centuri’s core offerings include pipeline installation and rehabilitation, civil sitework, earthwork, structural concrete and slope protection.