Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Reduces Position in Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP

Key Points

• Fort Washington Investment Advisors cut its stake in Targa Resources by 25.6% in the first quarter, selling 6,657 shares and leaving it with 19,299 shares worth about $4.84 million.
• Targa Resources posted mixed quarterly results, with EPS of $2.21 and revenue of $4.09 billion, both below analyst expectations; however, analysts still expect 10.75 EPS for the full year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $272.73.

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH trimmed its holdings in Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP - Free Report) by 25.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,299 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 6,657 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH's holdings in Targa Resources were worth $4,839,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Targa Resources by 9.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 19,643,139 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $3,291,012,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620,253 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Targa Resources by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,668,233 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,337,289,000 after acquiring an additional 162,878 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Targa Resources by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,867,345 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,078,497,000 after acquiring an additional 45,495 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Targa Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $735,758,000. Finally, Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. lifted its stake in Targa Resources by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 3,389,006 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $625,272,000 after purchasing an additional 572,562 shares in the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Targa Resources Stock Performance

Targa Resources stock opened at $271.09 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $260.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $230.11. Targa Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.14 and a 1-year high of $280.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $58.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.72.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.48 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.68 billion. Targa Resources had a return on equity of 71.00% and a net margin of 12.87%. On average, analysts expect that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 10.75 EPS for the current year.

Targa Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Targa Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Targa Resources's payout ratio is 50.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on TRGP shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Targa Resources in a report on Thursday, June 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $314.00 target price on the stock. Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on Targa Resources in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $268.00 price objective on Targa Resources in a research note on Friday, May 8th. US Capital Advisors cut Targa Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Targa Resources from $262.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $272.73.

Insider Transactions at Targa Resources

In other Targa Resources news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of Targa Resources stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total value of $2,713,687.92. Following the sale, the director owned 66,492 shares in the company, valued at $17,019,292.32. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corporation NYSE: TRGP is a U.S.-focused midstream energy company that provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and marketing services for natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and condensate. Its operations span the midstream value chain, including gas gathering systems that collect production from wells, processing plants that separate and recover NGLs and other hydrocarbons, fractionation and purification facilities that prepare NGLs for market, and pipeline and terminal assets that move and store products for producers, refiners and other customers.

The company operates a network of pipelines, processing plants, fractionators and storage facilities that serve producers and consumers across major U.S.

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