Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Zacks: Brokerages Anticipate Granite Construction Inc. (GVA) Will Announce Earnings of $0.89 Per Sha

Equities analysts expect Granite Construction Inc. (NYSE:GVA) to announce earnings per share (EPS) of $0.89 for the current quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Two analysts have made estimates for Granite Construction’s earnings, with estimates ranging from $0.88 to $0.90. Granite Construction posted earnings per share of $0.35 in the same quarter last year, which indicates a positive year over year growth rate of 154.3%. The firm is expected to issue its next earnings results on Tuesday, August 7th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Granite Construction will report full year earnings of $3.36 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.24 to $3.50. For the next fiscal year, analysts forecast that the company will post earnings of $4.50 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $4.31 to $4.69. Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that that provide coverage for Granite Construction.

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Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 30th. The construction company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.37) by $0.24. The company had revenue of $563.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $534.77 million. Granite Construction had a return on equity of 8.82% and a net margin of 2.64%. The business’s revenue was up 20.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.60) earnings per share.

Several analysts recently weighed in on GVA shares. ValuEngine raised Granite Construction from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 8th. DA Davidson raised Granite Construction from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 5th. Zacks Investment Research cut Granite Construction from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 6th. Finally, MKM Partners dropped their price target on Granite Construction to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $72.29.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GVA. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Granite Construction by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. now owns 299,912 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $19,024,000 after acquiring an additional 18,513 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Granite Construction by 2,194.6% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 58,720 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,725,000 after acquiring an additional 56,161 shares during the period. Investment House LLC bought a new position in Granite Construction during the 4th quarter worth $214,000. Parametrica Management Ltd bought a new position in Granite Construction during the 4th quarter worth $360,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Granite Construction by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 859,962 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $54,547,000 after acquiring an additional 19,775 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.16% of the company’s stock.

NYSE:GVA traded down $0.32 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $56.36. 11,957 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 349,325. The stock has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.28, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Granite Construction has a fifty-two week low of $45.94 and a fifty-two week high of $68.58.

Granite Construction Company Profile

Granite Construction Incorporated operates as a heavy civil contractor and a construction materials producer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Construction, Large Project Construction, and Construction Materials. The Construction segment undertakes various civil construction projects focusing on new construction and improvement of streets, roads, highways, bridges, site work, underground, power-related facilities, water-related facilities, utilities, and other infrastructure projects.

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Earnings History and Estimates for Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA)

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Which Generation Is Most Prepared for Retirement?

Millennials are often stereotyped as the internet generation, looking for immediate gratification and unable to take the long-term view. This suggests that members of that generation are not thinking about retirement. But a new study from J.D. Power shows that's not the case, at least among those with access to a group retirement plan.

It turns out that millennials, whom the survey defines as people born between 1982 and 1994, are the most prepared for retirement among all generations of group retirement-plan members. Over half of millennials (51%) have set specific retirement goals, compared with readings of just 44% for both Generation X members (1965-1976) and baby boomers (1946-1964). In addition, 83% of the millennials who have set goals said they are on track to meet them.

"The fact that many in the youngest generation of plan participants are actively preparing for retirement now sends a clear message to providers," said J.D. Power senior director Mike Foy in a press release. "They need to be focused on upping their game on their digital and mobile offerings to meet the expectations of this digitally engaged customer segment."

A person drops a coin into a piggy bank.

A study shows that millennials' retirement piggy banks are the best fed. Image source: Getty Images.

Baby boomers are lagging

While 75% of baby boomers have $100,000 in savings, the age group averages just 3.4 years of current income saved with an average of three years until retirement. And while there's no hard and fast rule for how much you need to�save for retirement, the number is certainly closer to 10 years of current income than it is to five.

Millennials are actually in better shape in this area as well, according to the study of 9,500 group retirement-plan members. Nearly two-thirds of the younger generation have at least $25,000 in a retirement account, while 27% have more than $100,000 saved. That's impressive when you consider that the average millennial is 30 to 35 years away from retirement.

What can you do?

You can't properly save for retirement without understanding how much money you will need to retire. That number depends on the lifestyle you expect to live when retired. If you plan to downsize, move someplace cheaper, and generally downgrade your lifestyle, you will need less than if you plan to mostly maintain the standard set during your working days.

To know where you stand when it comes to retirement savings, it's important to do an honest budget for your planned retirement. If, for example, you expect to travel a lot, then you have to factor in the cost of that.

As is the case with any financial planning, it's always best to assume that things won't go as planned. Nobody has ever been upset by having extra money in retirement, so it's better to err on the side of too much savings if at all possible.

Sunday, May 27, 2018

SG Americas Securities LLC Has $914,000 Holdings in Littelfuse, Inc. (LFUS)

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Littelfuse, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFUS) by 72.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,391 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Littelfuse were worth $914,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Littelfuse by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,829 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Littelfuse by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 2,617 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $518,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Advantus Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Littelfuse by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. Advantus Capital Management Inc now owns 3,054 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Forward Management LLC boosted its holdings in Littelfuse by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Forward Management LLC now owns 2,375 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Littelfuse by 47.8% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 1,330 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. 98.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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In other news, Director Gordon Hunter sold 12,873 shares of Littelfuse stock in a transaction on Monday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.13, for a total transaction of $2,846,606.49. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,557,338.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ryan K. Stafford sold 10,700 shares of Littelfuse stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total transaction of $2,247,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,754,040. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,526 shares of company stock valued at $12,601,426 over the last ninety days. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Littelfuse opened at $215.39 on Friday, according to Marketbeat.com. Littelfuse, Inc. has a 52-week low of $157.91 and a 52-week high of $226.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 3.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a PE ratio of 25.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.00.

Littelfuse (NASDAQ:LFUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 2nd. The technology company reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.58. Littelfuse had a net margin of 8.62% and a return on equity of 18.83%. The company had revenue of $417.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.69 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 46.4% compared to the same quarter last year. equities analysts expect that Littelfuse, Inc. will post 9.53 EPS for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 23rd. Littelfuse’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.12%.

LFUS has been the subject of several analyst reports. BidaskClub raised shares of Littelfuse from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 15th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Littelfuse from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $236.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 19th. Finally, ValuEngine raised shares of Littelfuse from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Littelfuse presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $212.75.

Littelfuse Company Profile

Littelfuse, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells circuit protection products worldwide. The company's Electronics segment offers fuses and fuse accessories, positive temperature coefficient resettable fuses, polymer electrostatic discharge suppressors, varistors, and gas discharge tubes; and semiconductor and power semiconductor products, such as discrete transient voltage suppressor (TVS) diodes, TVS diode arrays, protection and switching thyristors, silicon carbide, metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors, and silicon carbide diodes, as well as insulated gate bipolar transistors.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LFUS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Littelfuse, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFUS).

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Littelfuse (NASDAQ:LFUS)

Monday, May 21, 2018

3 Things In Biotech, May 20: You Want Some Good News?

Note: Subscribers to Avisol Capital Partners Total Pharma Tracker got an early look at this publication. Try for free today and see what we're talking about! Here is some more information if you're curious.

Welcome to another edition of "3 Things In Biotech You Should Learn Today," a daily digest dedicated to helping you keep pace with the fast-moving world of pharmaceutical and biotechnology research.

BeiGene launches a me too PARP inhibitor study in China

Company: BeiGene (NASDAQ:BGNE)

Therapy: Pamiparib

Disease: Platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer

News: BGNE announced that it has initiated a phase 3 clinical trial investigating a PARP inhibitor, pamiparib, as maintenance therapy for patients with recurrent ovarian cancer, similar to the approved therapies olaparib, niraparib, and rucaparib in the United States and Europe. This study is being conducted exclusively in China.

Looking forward: In America, there are 5 major PARP inhibitors approved or in development: Olaparib, rucaparib, niraparib, talazoparib, and veliparib. This one caught me by surprise, to be honest. I was simply not aware of it, and suddenly they're in phase 3! Sheesh...but that's the Chinese market for you, relatively opaque to many American onlookers like me. But this continues a growing wave. China is potentially a much bigger market, and American companies can't just waltz in and start marketing drugs. BGNE could get away with a very large chunk of market share if this phase 3 study is a success and leads to approval. And since I've started covering it last year, it's done nothing but grow!

I think it's time for you to take a serious look at BGNE!

Abeona Therapeutics shows off more promising data in wound healing

Company: Abeona Therapeutics (ABEO)

Therapy: EB-101

Disease: Epidermolysis bullosa

News: ABEO presented an update to its phase 1/2 trial data at the 21st Annual Meeting of the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy. This study assessed the safety and efficacy of EB-101, a technique of grafting a patient's skin cells that have been modified to correct the defective COL7A1 gene to promote effective wound healing in patients with epidermolysis bullosa. This study met its primary endpoint of safety and tolerability, and there was a favorable signal of efficacy, as well, with 67% of the patients demonstrating at least 50% wound closure 12 months post-treatment.

Looking forward: These findings continue to build a very interesting picture of EB-101, with a clear trend toward long-term, persistent efficacy for the therapy. ABEO gave insight into the efficacy of the technique as far as 36 months out, where 6 out of 6 patients with this much follow-up had >50% wound closure. Overall, the results of this study bode about as well as I can imagine for a phase 1/2 trial, and I am now wondering if these data will be sufficient to move EB-101 very quickly through the regulatory channels.

Very interesting positive development for ABEO, worthy of a deeper look for your portfolio.

BioLine shows off a winner in AML at EHA

Company: BioLine Rx (NASDAQ:BLRX)

Therapy: BL-8040

Disease: Relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML)

News: BLRX announced that it will be giving a presentation of updated findings from its phase 2a trial investigating its CXCR4 antagonist BL-8040 in patients with relapsed/refractory AML at this year's European Hematology Association Annual Congress. The expansion dose of the drug, in combination with chemotherapy, led to median overall survival of 9.2 months in the dose expansion cohort of patients, which compares favorably with the 6.1 months expected with chemotherapy alone based on historical controls.

Looking forward: These data are very encouraging, although the use of historical controls should give you some pause when trying to draw firm conclusions about efficacy. However, relapsed/refractory AML is a very tough treatment setting, with generally poor prognosis for patients. If CXCR4 antagonism is an effective treatment strategy, I personally will be elated. Without a doubt, this study supports the ongoing development of BL-8040, and I won't be surprised if this is the first sign that the drug will eventually be approved.

Very interesting, and I think this should put BLRX on your radar.

Author's note: Thank you for taking some time out of your day to read some commentary on recent biotech happenings. I hope you'll consider leaving a comment or a question in the section below! This is one way in which Seeking Alpha is able to gauge the effectiveness of its writers and the platform. So if you want to keep seeing more editions of "3 Things," go ahead and participate!

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Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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Saturday, May 19, 2018

Top Energy Stocks To Watch For 2018

tags:OGE,XHR,PTEN,

Many see blockchain as the technology of the future and that has created an amazing buzz around the sector. Similar to what happened in the 1990s, it is sufficient for a company to add blockchain to its name to see its stock spike up and interest rise. However, before investing, you should really look what is actually behind a stock and its exuberant name or behind the usage of a trendy word like "blockchain."

I discuss three stocks that are all related to blockchain but have different ways of approaching it. Hive Blockchain Technologies (OTCPK:PRELF) is a coin miner with facilities in Island and Sweden where it uses cheap energy to mine coins, mostly Ethereum. Interesting company with an even more interesting ownership structure and related party transactions.

Gain Capital Holdings (NYSE:GCAP) is a forex platform that recently announced the possibility of Bitcoin trading. The announcement pushed the stock price up more than 30%.

The third stock is Xinyuan Real Estate (NYSE:XIN), and it has a blockchain option that is perhaps the most serious of these three.

Top Energy Stocks To Watch For 2018: OGE Energy Corporation(OGE)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Logan Wallace]

    Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on OGE Energy (OGE)

    For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE:OGE) by 24.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,617 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in OGE Energy were worth $1,773,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Top Energy Stocks To Watch For 2018: Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc.(XHR)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Shane Hupp]

    Chicago Equity Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of Xenia Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:XHR) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 330,625 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 9,325 shares during the quarter. Chicago Equity Partners LLC owned 0.31% of Xenia Hotels & Resorts worth $6,520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and Xenia Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:XHR) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability and valuation.

  • [By Shane Hupp]

    LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in Xenia Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:XHR) by 18.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,446,848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 679,100 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 4.16% of Xenia Hotels & Resorts worth $87,691,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Top Energy Stocks To Watch For 2018: Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.(PTEN)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Stephan Byrd]

    Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Patterson-UTI (NASDAQ:PTEN) by 31.8% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,073,057 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 741,573 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Patterson-UTI were worth $53,810,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.