StockNews.com Downgrades Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) to Hold

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Thursday.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Plains GP from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Plains GP from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Plains GP in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $23.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Plains GP from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Plains GP from $17.50 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.64.

Plains GP Stock Up 0.1 %

Plains GP stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Thursday, reaching $18.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,985,058 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,266,848. Plains GP has a 52-week low of $13.09 and a 52-week high of $19.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $18.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07 and a beta of 1.53.

Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The pipeline company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $12.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.88 billion. Plains GP had a net margin of 0.35% and a return on equity of 1.15%. On average, analysts predict that Plains GP will post 1.05 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Plains GP by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 57,624 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $929,000 after purchasing an additional 5,185 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Plains GP by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 103,779 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,673,000 after buying an additional 1,760 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Plains GP by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 126,694 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,042,000 after acquiring an additional 3,337 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Plains GP by 31.8% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 44,967 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $725,000 after acquiring an additional 10,838 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Plains GP by 95.4% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,475 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,697 shares in the last quarter. 88.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.