Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Lowered to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

MPLX has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price 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. UBS Group increased their price objective on Mplx from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America began coverage on Mplx in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $43.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on Mplx from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mplx has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.11.

Mplx Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MPLX opened at $53.20 on Wednesday. Mplx has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $54.18. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $49.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company has a market capitalization of $54.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.42.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Mplx had a return on equity of 32.70% and a net margin of 36.77%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Mplx will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.9565 per share. This represents a $3.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.19%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Mplx’s payout ratio is currently 90.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mplx news, VP Carl Kristopher Hagedorn sold 4,000 shares of the firm’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 owns 14,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $696,790. This trade represents 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 the SEC website.

Institutional Trading of Mplx

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in Mplx by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 60,475 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,689,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. GraniteShares Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Mplx by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 51,441 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,462,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mplx by 1.4% in the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,701 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $876,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mplx by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 14,204 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $632,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Finally, FORA Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mplx by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 15,320 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $681,000 after buying an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 24.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Mplx

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.