MDU Resources' Strong Backlog to Boost Long-Term Growth
MDU Resources Group MDU announced that the Construction businesses segment ended first 11 months of 2018 with a growing backlog. As of Nov 30, the segment posted a backlog of $1.6 billion, up 45.45% year over year.
The backlog includes $929 million from the Construction services segment and $681 million from the Construction materials segment.
Acquisition Strategy
The increase in backlog can be attributed to rise in construction projects based on customer demand. Moreover, the company makes strategic acquisitions to expand operations.
To expand operations in the construction materials, its subsidiary Knife River Corporation, completed five deals in 2018. In April 2018, the company acquired Teevin & Fischer. In June, it acquired Little Falls, MN-based Tri-City Paving. In July, the company acquired the operations of Molalla Redi-Mix and Rock Products, Inc. In October, MDU Resources announced the acquisition of Sweetman Const. Co.
Long-Term Investment Plans
MDU Resources projects capital expenditure of $2.6 billion for the period of 2019-2023. The company will spend 27.5% of the projected amount on the construction materials and services segment. These investments are likely to boost the Construction material business and will increase reliability of services. This will enable the company to serve increasing customer base, effectively. Notably, the company anticipates the customer base to expand 1-2% annually.
Price Performance
In the past 12 months, the company’s shares have lost 5.2% compared with the industry’s gain of 4.0%.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
MDU Resources currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
A few better-ranked stocks from the same industry are Southwest Gas Corp SWX, Sempra Energy SRE and ONE Gas, Inc OGS. All three stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Southwest Gas reported an average positive earnings surprise of 31.31% in the last four quarters. Its expected EPS growth for the next 3-5 years is pegged at 4.0%
Sempra Energy reported an average positive earnings surprise of 4.97% in the past four quarters. Its expected EPS growth for the next 3-5 years is pegged at 8.10%
ONE Gas reported an average positive earnings surprise of 11.36% in the last four quarters. Its expected EPS growth for the next 3-5 years is pegged at 5.71%
Wall Street’s Next Amazon
Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.
Click for details >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
ONE Gas, Inc. (OGS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
MDU Resources Group, Inc. (MDU) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Sempra Energy (SRE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
