Knife River initiated with an Outperform at RBC Capital

RBC Capital analyst Anthony Codling initiated coverage of Knife River (KNF) with an Outperform rating and $129 price target The firm says Knife River “is David compared to the Goliaths of Martin and Vulcan, and is agile, nimble and knows how to handle aggregates.” It sees the company growing EBITDA margin from 16% to 20%. A change in mix coupled with margin improvement will deliver the 20% and that the target is consistent with Knife River’s public statements of aggregates-led growth, focusing on higher value contracting and benchmarking and operational excellence, the analyst tells investors in a research note.