Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Cut to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Monday morning.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on MPLX. Barclays boosted their price target on Mplx from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Mplx from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Mplx in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Mplx from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Mplx from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mplx presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.89.

Mplx Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPLX opened at $51.77 on Monday. Mplx has a one year low of $37.04 and a one year high of $53.15. The stock has a market cap of $52.74 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.43. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $49.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. Mplx had a net margin of 36.77% and a return on equity of 32.70%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Mplx will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.9565 dividend. This represents a $3.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. Mplx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Carl Kristopher Hagedorn sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.24, for a total value of $188,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $696,790. The trade was a 21.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mplx during the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Mplx by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,135 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mplx in the 4th quarter worth $98,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mplx by 393.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,451 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the period. Finally, Archford Capital Strategies LLC bought a new position in Mplx during the fourth quarter valued at about $200,000. Institutional investors own 24.25% of the company’s stock.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP engages in the operation of midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets, and distribution fuels services. It operates through the Logistics and Storage (L&S) and Gathering and Processing (G&P) segments. The Logistics and Storage segment transports, stores, distributes, and markets crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water.