Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Given New $22.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) had its price target increased by Stifel Nicolaus from $18.00 to $22.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays increased their price target on Plains GP from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Plains GP from $16.50 to $17.50 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Plains GP from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Plains GP in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a sector outperform rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Plains GP from $14.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Plains GP presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $19.55.

Plains GP Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of PAGP stock opened at $18.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88 and a beta of 1.55. Plains GP has a fifty-two week low of $12.59 and a fifty-two week high of $19.77. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The pipeline company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.06). Plains GP had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 1.33%. The company had revenue of $12.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.88 billion. Research analysts forecast that Plains GP will post 1.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Plains GP Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.3175 per share. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. Plains GP’s payout ratio is 124.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Plains GP

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Plains GP by 41.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,333,168 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $130,898,000 after purchasing an additional 3,318,007 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Plains GP by 88.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,772,217 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $60,167,000 after buying an additional 1,774,438 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Plains GP by 58.9% during the 4th quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 4,645,531 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $74,096,000 after acquiring an additional 1,721,120 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Plains GP by 43.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,958,406 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $79,930,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506,884 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Plains GP by 68.5% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,254,876 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $40,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322,722 shares during the period. 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.