Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

PAGP has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded Plains GP to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered Plains GP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Plains GP presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.00.

Plains GP Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PAGP opened at $17.66 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.61. The stock has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of 21.28 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.00. Plains GP has a one year low of $14.93 and a one year high of $20.10.

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The pipeline company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $12.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.70 billion. Plains GP had a net margin of 0.33% and a return on equity of 1.09%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Plains GP will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PAGP. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Plains GP in the 1st quarter valued at $697,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Plains GP by 3,286.4% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 22,350 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 21,690 shares in the last quarter. FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Plains GP in the 1st quarter valued at $530,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its holdings in Plains GP by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 167,817 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $3,032,000 after purchasing an additional 2,603 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Plains GP by 25.2% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,712,817 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $31,259,000 after purchasing an additional 344,303 shares in the last quarter. 88.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Plains GP

Plains GP Holdings, L.P., through its subsidiary, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., owns and operates midstream infrastructure systems in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Crude Oil and Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs). The company engages in the gathering and transporting crude oil and NGLs using pipelines, gathering systems, and trucks.