Knife River initiated with Buy on highway spending at Loop Capital

Loop Capital analyst Garik Shmois last night initiated coverage of Knife River with a Buy rating and $81 price target. While the company has had a successful separation from MDU Resources, there are additional pathways for the shares to move higher, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes Knife is well positioned to capture the accelerated growth it anticipates in highway and street spending as its vertically integrated model helps capture volume opportunities across many stages of the construction cycle. Second, it likes the company’s geographic position in states.