V Square Quantitative Management LLC Invests $849,000 in Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP

Key Points

• V Square Quantitative Management LLC opened a new position in Targa Resources (TRGP) in Q4, buying 4,600 shares valued at approximately $849,000, and institutional investors now own about 92.13% of the company.
• Targa beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.51 vs. $2.35) and pays a quarterly dividend of $1.00 (annualized $4.00, ~1.6% yield), with a market cap around $52.7 billion and a P/E of 28.5.
• Insiders have sold roughly 104,929 shares (~$24.7M) over the past three months even as analysts have raised targets and the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with a $256.71 price target.

V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 4,600 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $849,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. West Paces Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Targa Resources by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 1,615 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Targa Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Targa Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $225,000. Secure Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Targa Resources by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 12,892 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $2,379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Targa Resources by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,594 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.13% of the company's stock.

Targa Resources Stock Up 0.5%

TRGP stock opened at $245.19 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $232.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.52. The company has a market capitalization of $52.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.21, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Targa Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.14 and a 12 month high of $253.87.

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

Targa Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Targa Resources's dividend payout ratio is 46.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.92, for a total value of $4,006,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 31,938 shares in the company, valued at $7,311,246.96. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lindsey Cooksen sold 435 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.72, for a total transaction of $100,798.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 104,929 shares of company stock valued at $24,692,134. Corporate insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on TRGP. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $228.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $200.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $279.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $192.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $256.71.

About Targa Resources

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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