Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Buy” by the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $176.50.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Argus upgraded Targa Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $182.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $153.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Targa Resources from $190.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Targa Resources from $182.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Targa Resources Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE TRGP opened at $186.28 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.69, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 2.28. Targa Resources has a 12 month low of $81.03 and a 12 month high of $209.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $180.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.53.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.17. Targa Resources had a return on equity of 27.59% and a net margin of 7.65%. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Targa Resources will post 6.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Targa Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 30,000 shares of Targa Resources stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.33, for a total value of $5,709,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 82,979 shares in the company, valued at $15,793,393.07. This trade represents a 26.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joe Bob Perkins sold 150,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.53, for a total transaction of $23,329,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 110,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,181,399.10. This trade represents a 57.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 183,260 shares of company stock worth $29,661,212. 1.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Targa Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TRGP. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Targa Resources in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. DT Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Targa Resources during the third quarter valued at $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 2,220.0% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 232 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Targa Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. bought a new stake in Targa Resources in the second quarter valued at about $44,000. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Targa Resources Company Profile

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.