Morgan Stanley Raises Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Price Target to $298.00

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $266.00 to $298.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the pipeline company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 22.49% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on TRGP. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Friday, January 9th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Targa Resources from $192.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Citigroup upped their price target on Targa Resources from $200.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Targa Resources from $207.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $226.00 price objective on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Targa Resources presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $240.79.

Targa Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TRGP opened at $243.28 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $203.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $179.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.21, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $52.29 billion, a PE ratio of 28.32, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.84. Targa Resources has a 1-year low of $144.14 and a 1-year high of $250.00.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The pipeline company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $4.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Targa Resources had a net margin of 10.88% and a return on equity of 65.48%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Targa Resources will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Targa Resources

In other news, insider Patrick J. Mcdonie sold 31,537 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.36, for a total value of $7,548,696.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 305,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,043,815.68. This trade represents a 9.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lindsey Cooksen sold 435 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.72, for a total value of $100,798.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,670 shares in the company, valued at $2,704,172.40. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 83,090 shares of company stock worth $19,256,152 over the last three months. 1.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Targa Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRGP. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Targa Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $52,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 548.8% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 224,984 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $41,510,000 after buying an additional 190,306 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 104.2% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 3,022 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $557,000 after buying an additional 1,542 shares in the last quarter. CacheTech Inc. bought a new position in Targa Resources in the 4th quarter worth $214,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Targa Resources by 180.9% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,949 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,681,000 after buying an additional 12,846 shares in the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corporation (NYSE: TRGP) is a U.S.-focused midstream energy company that provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and marketing services for natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and condensate. Its operations span the midstream value chain, including gas gathering systems that collect production from wells, processing plants that separate and recover NGLs and other hydrocarbons, fractionation and purification facilities that prepare NGLs for market, and pipeline and terminal assets that move and store products for producers, refiners and other customers.

The company operates a network of pipelines, processing plants, fractionators and storage facilities that serve producers and consumers across major U.S.