Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Raises Stock Position in Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Kinder Morgan by 1.9%, owning approximately $49.36 million worth of shares, making it the fund's 11th largest holding.
• Recent insider transactions include VP Sital K. Mody selling 45,549 shares for over $1.27 million, indicating a level of insider selling activity within the company.
• Several equity research analysts have recently upgraded Kinder Morgan, with price targets ranging from $28 to $34, reflecting a consensus average rating of "Moderate Buy."

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI - Free Report) by 1.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,730,038 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,193 shares during the quarter. Kinder Morgan makes up about 1.2% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.08% of Kinder Morgan worth $49,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 788 shares during the period. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors grew 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 acquiring an additional 870 shares during the period. 62.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Kinder Morgan in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Kinder Morgan from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wolfe Research raised shares of 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. Morgan Stanley set a $34.00 target price on shares of Kinder Morgan in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Kinder Morgan from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kinder Morgan

In related news, VP John W. Schlosser sold 6,166 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.80, for a total value of $171,414.80. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 232,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,450,545.20. The trade was a 2.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Amy W. Chronis acquired 2,759 shares of Kinder Morgan stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.21 per share, for a total transaction of $75,072.39. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 34,764 shares in the company, valued at $945,928.44. This trade represents a 8.62% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,715 shares of company stock worth $3,081,245. Corporate insiders own 12.73% of the company's stock.

Kinder Morgan Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE KMI traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $26.89. 15,114,704 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,056,652. Kinder Morgan, Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.56 and a 12-month high of $31.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $27.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.75 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.78.

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

Kinder Morgan Dividend Announcement

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

About Kinder Morgan

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.