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

StockNews.com cut shares of Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Raymond James increased their price target on Mplx from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on Mplx from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Mplx from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Mplx from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Mplx from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mplx has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.11.

Mplx Stock Performance

NYSE MPLX opened at $53.89 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.80, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.42. Mplx has a twelve month low of $38.22 and a twelve month high of $54.52. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.03. Mplx had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 36.18%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. Mplx’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Mplx will post 4.39 EPS for the current year.

Mplx Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.9565 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $3.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.10%. Mplx’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.97%.

Insider Activity at Mplx

In related news, VP Carl Kristopher Hagedorn sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.24, for a total value of $188,960.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,750 shares of the company’s stock, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. PFG Investments LLC lifted its position in Mplx by 38.5% in the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 38,506 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,843,000 after acquiring an additional 10,705 shares in the last quarter. Walnut Private Equity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Mplx by 479.6% during the 4th quarter. Walnut Private Equity Partners LLC now owns 153,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $7,351,000 after buying an additional 127,100 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Mplx by 387.5% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 23,543 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,047,000 after buying an additional 18,714 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Mplx by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 149,509 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $6,647,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Mplx by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 280,885 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $12,488,000 after buying an additional 19,320 shares in the last quarter. 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.