Cantor Fitzgerald Upgrades Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) to Strong-Buy

Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) was upgraded by research analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

CTRI has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Centuri from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on Centuri from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Centuri in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Centuri from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.40.

Centuri Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE CTRI opened at $28.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 948.58, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.43. Centuri has a one year low of $14.45 and a one year high of $28.89.

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

Insider Transactions at Centuri

In other news, CEO Christian Brown sold 7,108 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 22,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,401.39. This trade represents a 24.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn bought 3,488,372 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $21.50 per share, with a total value of $74,999,998.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 14,336,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $308,224,946. The trade was a 32.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Centuri

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in shares of Centuri by 13,385.7% during the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,874 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in Centuri by 288.1% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,691 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in Centuri by 238.1% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in Centuri in the third quarter valued at $119,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Centuri by 121.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,000 after acquiring an additional 3,037 shares in the last quarter.

Centuri Company Profile

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.