Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Stock Price Up 5.2% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE:PAGP) were up 5.2% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $19.80 and last traded at $19.75. Approximately 262,299 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 1,155,670 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PAGP. Wolfe Research raised shares of Plains GP to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Plains GP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley cut Plains GP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Plains GP from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.88.

Plains GP Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a PE ratio of 23.27 and a beta of 1.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $18.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Institutional Trading of Plains GP

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Plains GP by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 8,218,030 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $151,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629,008 shares in the last quarter. Sfmg LLC grew its stake in shares of Plains GP by 87.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 75,489 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,397,000 after purchasing an additional 35,240 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Plains GP by 2.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 156,635 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,898,000 after acquiring an additional 3,582 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in Plains GP by 79.1% during the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 78,442 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 34,633 shares during the period. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Plains GP by 10.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 6,990 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.30% of the company’s stock.

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.