Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Cuts Holdings in Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA reduced its position in Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,878 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 684 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Targa Resources were worth $18,542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRGP. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Targa Resources during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in Targa Resources by 394.6% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 183 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 144.4% in the 4th quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 220 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its holdings in shares of Targa Resources by 49.4% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 269 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Targa Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. 92.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Targa Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TRGP opened at $203.16 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $198.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $186.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.77. Targa Resources Corp. has a one year low of $110.09 and a one year high of $218.51. The firm has a market cap of $44.31 billion, a PE ratio of 35.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 2.32.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The pipeline company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.46). Targa Resources had a return on equity of 28.67% and a net margin of 7.81%. The firm had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.48 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Targa Resources Corp. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Targa Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Targa Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on TRGP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Targa Resources from $204.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on Targa Resources from $204.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup raised their price target on Targa Resources from $218.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $202.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $208.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Matthew J. Meloy sold 48,837 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.08, for a total transaction of $9,527,121.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 725,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,555,510.24. This trade represents a 6.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jennifer R. Kneale sold 29,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.42, for a total transaction of $5,750,856.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 227,269 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,731,100.98. This represents a 11.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 115,914 shares of company stock worth $22,613,288 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

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.