Kestra Advisory Services LLC Increases Stock Position in Mplx Lp $MPLX

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in MPLX LP by 10.4%, owning 104,362 shares worth approximately $5.58 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• MPLX reported a net margin of 35.44% and earnings per share of $1.03, missing analysts' estimates of $1.08.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.9565 per share, representing a yield of 7.6% and a dividend payout ratio of 90.97%.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX - Free Report) by 10.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,362 shares of the pipeline company's stock after buying an additional 9,805 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Mplx were worth $5,585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MPLX. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in Mplx in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mplx in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Mplx in the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. PSI Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Mplx by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA bought a new stake in shares of Mplx during the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. 24.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MPLX. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Mplx from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Mplx from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Mplx from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Mplx from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mplx presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.89.

Mplx Price Performance

Shares of MPLX stock traded up $0.50 on Friday, reaching $50.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,340,648 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,604,725. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Mplx Lp has a 12-month low of $42.06 and a 12-month high of $54.87. The company has a market capitalization of $51.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.10, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.73. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $50.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.39.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.05). Mplx had a return on equity of 30.95% and a net margin of 35.44%.The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mplx Lp will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were given a $0.9565 dividend. This represents a $3.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. Mplx's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.97%.

Mplx Profile

MPLX LP engages in the operation of midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets, and distribution fuels services. It operates through the Crude Oil and Products Logistics and Natural Gas and NGL Services segments. The Crude Oil and Products Logistics segment transports, stores, distributes, and markets crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water.