Quantbot Technologies LP Boosts Stake in Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF)

Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF) by 39.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,508 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,161 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Knife River were worth $2,068,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Knife River by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,044,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,004,000 after purchasing an additional 503,892 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Knife River by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,398,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,546,000 after acquiring an additional 199,389 shares during the period. Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. LLC raised its stake in Knife River by 48.0% during the fourth quarter. Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. LLC now owns 1,150,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,138,000 after acquiring an additional 373,359 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Knife River by 122.2% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 819,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,221,000 after acquiring an additional 450,574 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Knife River during the fourth quarter worth about $40,548,000. 80.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Knife River Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KNF traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $76.55. The stock had a trading volume of 372,087 shares, compared to its average volume of 392,340. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.20. Knife River Co. has a 1-year low of $42.35 and a 1-year high of $83.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.33 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.75.

Knife River (NYSE:KNF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.84) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.80) by ($0.04). Knife River had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 14.65%. The firm had revenue of $329.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $300.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($516.50) EPS. Knife River’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Knife River Co. will post 3.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on KNF. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Knife River from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Stephens began coverage on shares of Knife River in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.67.

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.