Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wolfe Research

Key Points

• Wolfe Research downgraded Kinder Morgan (KMI) from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" in its latest analyst report.
• Kinder Morgan posted a quarter-beating print with EPS of $0.39 versus $0.37 expected and revenue up 13.1% year-over-year to $4.51 billion.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed — seven Buys and ten Holds for an average rating of "Hold" and a 12‑month target of $34.33, while the stock trades around $31.63 (market cap ≈ $70.4B).

Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wolfe Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Kinder Morgan from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Kinder Morgan from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Kinder Morgan from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $34.33.

Kinder Morgan Price Performance

Shares of KMI opened at $31.63 on Tuesday. Kinder Morgan has a 12-month low of $25.60 and a 12-month high of $34.73. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $70.38 billion, a PE ratio of 23.09, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.64.

Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The pipeline company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.02. Kinder Morgan had a return on equity of 9.02% and a net margin of 18.04%.The business had revenue of $4.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Kinder Morgan will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kinder Morgan

In other Kinder Morgan news, VP Michael P. Garthwaite sold 1,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.72, for a total value of $49,166.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 44,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,422,419.96. The trade was a 3.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Anthony B. Ashley sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total value of $255,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 100,146 shares in the company, valued at $3,199,664.70. This trade represents a 7.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 49,598 shares of company stock worth $1,552,572. 12.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kinder Morgan

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Kinder Morgan during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,132,125,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Kinder Morgan by 431.9% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,569,082 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $185,971,000 after purchasing an additional 5,333,986 shares in the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Kinder Morgan during the 2nd quarter valued at about $138,477,000. Zimmer Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Kinder Morgan by 177.8% during the 3rd quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 6,070,100 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $171,845,000 after purchasing an additional 3,885,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in shares of Kinder Morgan during the 4th quarter valued at about $85,364,000. Institutional investors own 62.52% of the company's stock.

About Kinder Morgan

Kinder Morgan NYSE: KMI is a large energy infrastructure company that owns and operates an extensive network of pipelines and terminals across North America. Its core activities center on the transportation, storage and handling of energy products, including natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, refined petroleum products and carbon dioxide. The company's assets include long-haul and gathering pipelines, storage facilities, and multi-modal terminals that serve producers, refiners, utilities and industrial customers.

Kinder Morgan's operations deliver midstream services such as pipeline transportation, terminaling, storage and related logistics and maintenance.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.