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

Centuri Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CTRI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,930,000 shares, a growth of 5.4% from the August 15th total of 2,780,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 602,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.9 days. Currently, 17.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Centuri Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CTRI traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $16.70. 29,208 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 543,276. Centuri has a twelve month low of $14.47 and a twelve month high of $28.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $17.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 2.05.

Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $672.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $760.55 million. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Centuri will post 0.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centuri

In other Centuri news, Director William Fehrman acquired 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $16.50 per share, with a total value of $330,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 45,000 shares in the company, valued at $742,500. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CTRI. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of Centuri during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,619,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC purchased a new position in Centuri in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,587,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Centuri in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,339,000. Ghisallo Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Centuri in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,409,000. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. purchased a new position in Centuri in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,922,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on CTRI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Centuri from $28.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Centuri in a report on Thursday, June 27th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Centuri from $21.00 to $15.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Centuri from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Centuri from $29.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.60.

Centuri Company Profile

Centuri Holdings, Inc operates as a utility infrastructure services company in North America. It offers gas utility services, including maintenance, repair, installation, and replacement services for natural gas local distribution utility companies with focus on the modernization of infrastructure. The company also provides electric utility services comprising design, maintenance and repair, upgrade, and expansion services for transmission and distribution infrastructure.