Van ECK Associates Corp Makes New Investment in Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF)

Van ECK Associates Corp acquired a new position in shares of Knife River Co. (NYSE:KNF - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 41,328 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,201,000. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.07% of Knife River as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Huntington National Bank grew its position in shares of Knife River by 586.0% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 343 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Knife River by 72.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 539 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Knife River in the 3rd quarter valued at about $60,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC grew its position in shares of Knife River by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 960 shares of the company's stock valued at $86,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Knife River by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,288 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.11% of the company's stock.

Knife River Trading Down 7.4 %

Shares of NYSE:KNF traded down $7.51 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $93.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 308,308 shares, compared to its average volume of 424,588. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.67. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $102.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.68. Knife River Co. has a fifty-two week low of $66.13 and a fifty-two week high of $108.83.

Knife River (NYSE:KNF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. Knife River had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 6.96%. The business had revenue of $657.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $655.80 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Knife River Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on KNF shares. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Knife River from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on Knife River from $105.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Knife River from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Knife River in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Knife River presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $112.50.

About Knife River

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.