Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) Shares Bought by HighTower Advisors LLC

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kinder Morgan, Inc. by 3.7% to own approximately 1,188,940 shares, valued at about $33.9 million.
• Wall Street analysts have set target prices for Kinder Morgan with a consensus of $31.20 and a rating of "Moderate Buy," reflecting growing optimism about the company’s performance.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.2925 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 4.4%, with a notable payout ratio of 95.90%.

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI - Free Report) by 3.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,188,940 shares of the pipeline company's stock after acquiring an additional 42,439 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Kinder Morgan worth $33,920,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC lifted its stake in Kinder Morgan by 927.1% in the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 873 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors lifted its stake in Kinder Morgan by 669.2% in the 1st quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 1,000 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.52% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Kinder Morgan

In related news, EVP Dax Sanders sold 30,127 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.05, for a total value of $814,935.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 292,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,898,600. This represents a 9.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP John W. Schlosser sold 6,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.80, for a total value of $171,414.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 232,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,450,545.20. This represents a 2.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 139,842 shares of company stock worth $3,896,180 in the last quarter. 12.73% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Kinder Morgan from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Kinder Morgan from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Wolfe Research raised Kinder Morgan from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. TD Cowen began coverage on Kinder Morgan in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Cowen began coverage on Kinder Morgan in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kinder Morgan has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.20.

Kinder Morgan Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of KMI stock traded down $0.16 on Friday, reaching $26.69. 13,657,267 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,484,992. The stock has a market cap of $59.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.37. Kinder Morgan, Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.56 and a 1-year high of $31.48.

Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28. The business had revenue of $4.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. Kinder Morgan had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 17.06%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Kinder Morgan, Inc. will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Kinder Morgan Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.2925 dividend. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Kinder Morgan's dividend payout ratio is currently 95.90%.

Kinder Morgan Company Profile

Kinder Morgan, Inc operates as an energy infrastructure company primarily in North America. The company operates through Natural Gas Pipelines, Products Pipelines, Terminals, and CO2 segments. The Natural Gas Pipelines segment owns and operates interstate and intrastate natural gas pipeline, and storage systems; natural gas gathering systems and natural gas processing and treating facilities; natural gas liquids fractionation facilities and transportation systems; and liquefied natural gas gasification, liquefaction, and storage facilities.