Citigroup Boosts Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Price Target to $227.00

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) had its price target increased by analysts at Citigroup from $218.00 to $227.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the pipeline company’s stock. Citigroup’s price target points to a potential upside of 14.53% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on TRGP. US Capital Advisors downgraded shares of Targa Resources from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $218.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $172.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $190.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $171.00 to $204.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.43.

Targa Resources Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:TRGP opened at $198.20 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $197.00 and a 200 day moving average of $177.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.77. Targa Resources has a 52-week low of $96.64 and a 52-week high of $218.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.23 billion, a PE ratio of 34.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 2.29.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The pipeline company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.46). The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.48 billion. Targa Resources had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 28.67%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Targa Resources will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jennifer R. Kneale sold 29,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.42, for a total transaction of $5,750,856.54. Following the sale, the insider now owns 227,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,731,100.98. This trade represents a 11.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Matthew J. Meloy sold 48,837 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.08, for a total transaction of $9,527,121.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 725,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141,555,510.24. This represents a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Targa Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in Targa Resources by 65.1% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 25,615 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,791,000 after purchasing an additional 10,100 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Targa Resources by 85.7% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 28,530 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $5,070,000 after purchasing an additional 13,167 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Targa Resources by 191.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,268 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,476,000 after purchasing an additional 5,431 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Targa Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $271,000. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Targa Resources during the third quarter worth about $11,042,000. 92.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corp., together with its subsidiary, Targa Resources Partners LP, owns, operates, acquires, and develops a portfolio of complementary domestic midstream infrastructure assets in North America. It operates in two segments, Gathering and Processing, and Logistics and Transportation. The company is involved in gathering, compressing, treating, processing, transporting, and selling natural gas; storing, fractionating, treating, transporting, and selling natural gas liquids (NGL) and NGL products, including services to liquefied petroleum gas exporters; and gathering, storing, terminaling, purchasing, and selling crude oil.