Ausbil Investment Management Ltd Lowers Stock Holdings in Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP)

Ausbil Investment Management Ltd lessened its holdings in Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP) by 34.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,842 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 20,936 shares during the period. Targa Resources accounts for approximately 1.7% of Ausbil Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Targa Resources were worth $5,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of TRGP. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Targa Resources in the second quarter worth $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Targa Resources by 2,220.0% during 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. Whittier Trust Co. bought a new position in shares of Targa Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Targa Resources during the first quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Rogco LP bought a new stake in shares of Targa Resources in the first quarter worth about $56,000. 92.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Targa Resources Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:TRGP traded up $1.78 on Thursday, reaching $167.62. The company had a trading volume of 489,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,641,210. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.72 billion, a PE ratio of 35.04, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 2.25. Targa Resources Corp. has a 52-week low of $81.03 and a 52-week high of $168.42. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $151.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $133.31.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pipeline company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.33 billion. Targa Resources had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 23.98%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Targa Resources Corp. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Targa Resources’s payout ratio is presently 63.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Paul W. Chung sold 916 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.35, for a total transaction of $124,896.60. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 238,591 shares in the company, valued at $32,531,882.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CAO Julie H. Boushka sold 1,213 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.02, for a total transaction of $160,140.26. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 52,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,898,969.14. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul W. Chung sold 916 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.35, for a total value of $124,896.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 238,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,531,882.85. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 175,534 shares of company stock worth $26,815,021. Insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TRGP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus raised Targa Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Targa Resources from $124.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $153.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $182.00 target price on the stock. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Targa Resources has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $148.36.

Targa Resources 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.