Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

Separately, Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price target (up from $27.00) on shares of Alliance Resource Partners in a report on Tuesday, February 4th.

Alliance Resource Partners Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ARLP traded down $0.05 on Friday, hitting $26.40. The stock had a trading volume of 674,005 shares, compared to its average volume of 366,182. The company has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.36. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $26.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.56. Alliance Resource Partners has a twelve month low of $21.84 and a twelve month high of $30.56.

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The energy company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $540.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $556.31 million. Alliance Resource Partners had a return on equity of 19.09% and a net margin of 14.74%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alliance Resource Partners will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliance Resource Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. Alliance Resource Partners's dividend payout ratio is presently 132.08%.

Insider Activity

In other Alliance Resource Partners news, SVP Timothy J. Whelan sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.13, for a total transaction of $1,256,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 93,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,358,450.50. This represents a 34.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 16.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliance Resource Partners

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Alliance Resource Partners by 321.3% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 969 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 739 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Alliance Resource Partners in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in shares of Alliance Resource Partners during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Summit Securities Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 350.0% during the fourth quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the energy company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Alliance Resource Partners by 223.5% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,406 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 2,353 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 18.11% of the company's stock.

Alliance Resource Partners Company Profile

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P., a diversified natural resource company, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Illinois Basin Coal Operations, Appalachia Coal Operations, Oil & Gas Royalties, and Coal Royalties.