Shares of Granite Construction Inc. (NYSE: GVA) surged 5.49% on Thursday, November 1, 2024, after the infrastructure company reported record third-quarter results and provided an optimistic outlook for the coming years.

Granite Construction posted a 14% year-over-year increase in revenue to $1.28 billion for the third quarter of 2024, driven by higher construction activity across most of its geographies and contributions from recent acquisitions. The company's profitability metrics also showed significant improvement, with adjusted net income rising 18% and adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) increasing 18% year-over-year.

The strong performance was fueled by Granite Construction's focus on operational excellence, a higher-quality project portfolio, and favorable market conditions supported by infrastructure funding. According to CEO Kyle Larkin, the company is well-positioned to capitalize on the robust public infrastructure market and expects to see further margin expansion in both its Construction and Materials segments.

"Our public and private construction markets are strong, and we are in a great position to build backlog, drive growth and expand margins," said Larkin during the earnings call. "We believe our organic growth and margin expansion targets are achievable, and the significant cash our businesses generate when coupled with our available liquidity will allow us to continue our strategy of pursuing bolt-on and larger transactions."

Granite Construction expects its adjusted EBITDA margin to increase to a range of 12% to 14% by 2027, driven by initiatives such as automation, asset management, and pricing improvements in the Materials segment, as well as a continued focus on operational excellence and project selectivity in the Construction segment.