Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP Shares Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Key Points

• Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Targa Resources by 7.6% in Q3, acquiring an additional 6,741 shares to hold 94,907 shares valued at about $15.9 million.
• TRGP traded near $238.96 (1‑year high $250, low $144.14) with a market cap of $51.36 billion and a P/E of 27.82, while its 50- and 200-day moving averages are $209.52 and $182.50, respectively.
• Targa beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.51 vs. $2.35), pays a $1.00 quarterly dividend (annualized $4.00, ~1.7% yield) and holds a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" (target ~$241.93), though insiders sold ~104,929 shares (~$24.7M) in the past three months and institutions own ~92.13% of the stock.

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP - Free Report) by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 94,907 shares of the pipeline company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,741 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in Targa Resources were worth $15,901,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Targa Resources by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 143,904 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $24,110,000 after purchasing an additional 7,497 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in Targa Resources by 137.9% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 66,636 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $11,164,000 after buying an additional 38,626 shares during the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Targa Resources by 37.4% during the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 260,760 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $43,688,000 after buying an additional 70,998 shares during the period. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT lifted its stake in Targa Resources by 2.4% in the third quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 682,300 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $114,313,000 after buying an additional 16,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Targa Resources by 5.0% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 484,462 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $81,167,000 after buying an additional 22,969 shares during the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Targa Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE TRGP traded up $0.80 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $238.96. 173,981 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,441,325. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $209.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.50. Targa Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.14 and a 1-year high of $250.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.21. The firm has a market cap of $51.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.84.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The pipeline company reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. Targa Resources had a net margin of 10.88% and a return on equity of 65.48%. The company had revenue of $4.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.12 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Targa Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TRGP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $226.00 target price on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Targa Resources from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $200.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $248.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Friday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Targa Resources has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $241.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Targa Resources news, insider Robert Muraro sold 24,589 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.34, for a total transaction of $5,934,309.26. Following the transaction, the insider owned 197,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,640,757.34. The trade was a 11.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Lindsey Cooksen sold 435 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.72, for a total value of $100,798.20. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,704,172.40. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 104,929 shares of company stock worth $24,692,134 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.34% of the company's stock.

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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