Antero Midstream (NYSE:AM) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Key Points

• Earnings miss: Antero Midstream reported Q earnings of $0.25 EPS, missing the $0.26 consensus by $0.01, while revenue rose 7.9% year-over-year to $314.2 million and topped estimates.
• Dividend vs. payout: The company declared a $0.225 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.90) for a ~4.1% yield, though the payout ratio is elevated at 104.65%.
• Market sentiment: Analysts have recently raised ratings and price targets (consensus target ~$24) and institutional buying has increased, highlighted by Goldman Sachs materially boosting its stake.

Antero Midstream (NYSE:AM - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The pipeline company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. Antero Midstream had a net margin of 34.77% and a return on equity of 20.12%. The company had revenue of $314.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $309.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Antero Midstream Price Performance

NYSE AM traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $21.90. 2,902,991 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,857,681. The stock has a market cap of $10.40 billion, a PE ratio of 25.47 and a beta of 0.75. Antero Midstream has a one year low of $16.24 and a one year high of $23.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $22.34 and a 200-day moving average of $19.66. The company has a current ratio of 3.41, a quick ratio of 3.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63.

Antero Midstream Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be issued a $0.225 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. Antero Midstream's payout ratio is presently 104.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Antero Midstream from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $26.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Antero Midstream from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Antero Midstream from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Zacks Research cut Antero Midstream from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Antero Midstream from $18.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Antero Midstream

In other news, insider Sheri Pearce sold 14,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.76, for a total value of $318,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 99,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,273,724. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Brooks J. Klimley sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.16, for a total value of $115,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 69,680 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,613,788.80. This trade represents a 6.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 44,000 shares of company stock worth $1,004,690. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Antero Midstream

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AM. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd bought a new position in shares of Antero Midstream in the fourth quarter worth about $25,084,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Antero Midstream by 56.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,874,379 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $69,739,000 after buying an additional 1,400,368 shares in the last quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in Antero Midstream by 1,086.9% in the 3rd quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,383,349 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $26,892,000 after buying an additional 1,266,794 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in Antero Midstream in the 2nd quarter valued at $20,044,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Antero Midstream during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $18,811,000. Institutional investors own 53.97% of the company's stock.

About Antero Midstream

Antero Midstream Corporation is a publicly traded midstream service provider that was established in 2014 as a spin-off from Antero Resources. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, the company owns, operates and develops midstream infrastructure to support the gathering, compression, processing, transportation and storage of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil. Antero Midstream plays a critical role in connecting upstream production in the Appalachian Basin to end-market pipelines and processing facilities.

The company's core operations include a network of gathering pipelines and compression stations that serve the Marcellus and Utica shale formations across West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.