MRC Global Inc. $MRC Shares Acquired by Lord Abbett & CO. LLC

Key Points

• Lord Abbett & CO. LLC significantly increased its stake in MRC Global Inc. by 336.0% during the first quarter, owning approximately 4.06% of the company after acquiring over 2.6 million additional shares.
• Other large investors, including Sterling Capital Management and GAMMA Investing LLC, also made substantial increases to their positions, contributing to nearly 95% institutional ownership of MRC Global stock.
• MRC Global reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.25, surpassing analysts' expectations, but noted a 4.1% year-over-year decline in revenue.

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in shares of MRC Global Inc. (NYSE:MRC - Free Report) by 336.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,498,499 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 2,696,044 shares during the quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned about 4.06% of MRC Global worth $40,163,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MRC. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MRC Global by 821.2% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,699 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 2,406 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in MRC Global by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,462 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of MRC Global in the 4th quarter worth $129,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of MRC Global by 1,576.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,063 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 13,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MRC Global by 35.7% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,657 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 3,855 shares during the last quarter. 94.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MRC Global Stock Up 0.8%

MRC Global stock traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 218,731 shares, compared to its average volume of 859,871. MRC Global Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.23 and a 52-week high of $15.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -58.15 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $13.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.55.

MRC Global (NYSE:MRC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. MRC Global had a positive return on equity of 11.81% and a negative net margin of 0.10%.The firm had revenue of $798.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $784.60 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MRC Global Inc. will post 0.86 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of MRC Global from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 21st. Zacks Research upgraded MRC Global to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded MRC Global from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on MRC Global from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $16.00.

About MRC Global

MRC Global Inc, through its subsidiaries, distributes pipes, valves, fittings, and other infrastructure products and services in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It offers ball, butterfly, gate, globe, check, diaphragm, needle, and plug valves; other products, such as lined corrosion resistant piping systems, control valves, valve automation, and top work components; and valve modification services, including valve control extensions, welding, hydrotesting, painting, coating, x-raying, and actuation assembly.