Knife River (NYSE:KNF) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $100.67, but opened at $98.31. Knife River shares last traded at $98.81, with a volume of 6,785 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Knife River in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Knife River from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Knife River currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.80.

Knife River Price Performance

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Knife River (NYSE:KNF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($1.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.89) by ($0.32). The business had revenue of $353.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.98 million. Knife River had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 14.82%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.84) EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Knife River Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Knife River

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KNF. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Knife River by 4,145.2% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,667,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $150,456,000 after purchasing an additional 1,628,535 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Knife River by 830.7% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,101,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,965,000 after acquiring an additional 983,223 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Knife River by 1,200.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 887,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,224,000 after purchasing an additional 819,439 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Knife River in the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,631,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Knife River by 45.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,936,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,829,000 after purchasing an additional 603,170 shares during the last quarter. 80.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Knife River Company Profile

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.