Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 343,126 Shares of Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI - Free Report) by 14.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,953,072 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 343,126 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.09% of Kinder Morgan worth $55,721,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Morton Capital Management LLC CA increased its stake in shares of Kinder Morgan by 1.0% in the first quarter. Morton Capital Management LLC CA now owns 37,981 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,084,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the period. Diligent Investors LLC increased its stake in shares of Kinder Morgan by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 26,083 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $715,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Kinder Morgan by 1.8% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 21,068 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $601,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC boosted its holdings in Kinder Morgan by 1.7% in the first quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 23,738 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $677,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Kinder Morgan by 0.5% in the first quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 79,825 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,277,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.52% of the company's stock.

Kinder Morgan Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KMI traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $27.89. 18,792,404 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,821,146. Kinder Morgan, Inc. has a 1 year low of $19.68 and a 1 year high of $31.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $28.00 and a 200 day moving average of $27.61.

Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.28. The company had revenue of $4.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. Kinder Morgan had a net margin of 17.06% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Kinder Morgan, Inc. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Kinder Morgan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.2925 dividend. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Kinder Morgan's dividend payout ratio is 95.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on KMI shares. Cowen started coverage on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $32.00 price target (up previously from $31.00) on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Kinder Morgan from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Kinder Morgan from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kinder Morgan presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $31.00.

Insider Transactions at Kinder Morgan

In other news, President Thomas A. Martin sold 18,000 shares of Kinder Morgan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.26, for a total transaction of $508,680.00. Following the sale, the president owned 771,652 shares in the company, valued at $21,806,885.52. This trade represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 12.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Kinder Morgan

Kinder Morgan, Inc operates as an energy infrastructure company primarily in North America. The company operates through Natural Gas Pipelines, Products Pipelines, Terminals, and CO2 segments. The Natural Gas Pipelines segment owns and operates interstate and intrastate natural gas pipeline, and storage systems; natural gas gathering systems and natural gas processing and treating facilities; natural gas liquids fractionation facilities and transportation systems; and liquefied natural gas gasification, liquefaction, and storage facilities.