Millennium Management LLC Lowers Stake in Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE)

Millennium Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE - Free Report) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,116,051 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 73,038 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned 1.73% of Green Plains worth $10,580,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPRE. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Green Plains by 433.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,344 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 2,717 shares during the last quarter. Dauntless Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Green Plains by 120.7% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,071 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 3,320 shares during the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of Green Plains by 340.6% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 7,050 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 5,450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $96,000.

Green Plains Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ GPRE traded up $0.04 on Thursday, hitting $4.29. 143,555 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,403,820. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $4.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $7.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $280.23 million, a P/E ratio of -3.15 and a beta of 1.19. Green Plains Inc. has a 52-week low of $3.14 and a 52-week high of $18.14.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.88) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.51) by ($0.37). The firm had revenue of $601.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $605.62 million. Green Plains had a negative return on equity of 11.88% and a negative net margin of 3.36%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.81) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Green Plains Inc. will post -0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GPRE. UBS Group cut shares of Green Plains from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $20.50 to $7.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Green Plains from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America cut shares of Green Plains from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $4.50 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Green Plains from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $14.00 to $6.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Green Plains from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $11.93.

About Green Plains

Green Plains Inc produces low-carbon fuels in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Ethanol Production, Agribusiness and Energy Services, and Partnership. The Ethanol Production segment produces ethanol, distillers grains, and ultra-high protein and renewable corn oil.