Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Lowers Holdings in Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System cut its Targa Resources stake by 4.1% in the first quarter, selling 8,626 shares and leaving it with 204,295 shares valued at about $51.2 million.
• Targa Resources reported mixed quarterly results, with earnings of $2.21 per share and revenue of $4.09 billion both falling short of analyst expectations.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share from $1.00, while Wall Street remains generally positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $282.73.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP - Free Report) by 4.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 204,295 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 8,626 shares during the quarter. Targa Resources makes up approximately 1.0% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.10% of Targa Resources worth $51,223,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Calamos Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Targa Resources during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $333,000. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Targa Resources in the first quarter worth $333,000. AMG National Trust Bank purchased a new position in shares of Targa Resources in the first quarter worth $205,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Targa Resources by 133.7% during the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 39,813 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $9,983,000 after acquiring an additional 22,776 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Targa Resources during the first quarter worth $41,000. 92.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Targa Resources Trading Up 0.8%

TRGP stock opened at $281.58 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $265.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.91. Targa Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.14 and a fifty-two week high of $282.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $60.44 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.48 by ($0.27). Targa Resources had a return on equity of 71.00% and a net margin of 12.87%.The business had revenue of $4.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.68 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 10.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total transaction of $2,713,687.92. Following the sale, the director directly owned 66,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,019,292.32. This represents a 13.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on TRGP shares. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $236.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $318.00 price target on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Targa Resources from $327.00 to $331.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Targa Resources from $264.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Targa Resources has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $282.73.

Targa Resources Company Profile

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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