Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) Announces $1.08 Quarterly Dividend

Key Points

• MPLX declared a quarterly dividend of $1.0765 per share, payable August 14 to shareholders of record on August 7. The distribution implies an annualized yield of approximately 7.2% and marks the ninth consecutive year of annual dividend increases.
• The dividend appears covered but leaves limited cushion: MPLX’s payout ratio is 88.7% based on current earnings and is projected at 92.5% next year, assuming expected EPS of $4.65 versus $4.30 in annual dividends.
• MPLX’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with EPS of $0.90 versus the $1.05 consensus and revenue of $2.86 billion versus $3.09 billion; revenue declined 2.8% year over year.

Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, July 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of 1.0765 per share by the pipeline company on Friday, August 14th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th.

Mplx has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 9 consecutive years. Mplx has a dividend payout ratio of 88.7% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company's earnings tumble. Research analysts expect Mplx to earn $4.65 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.30 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 92.5%.

Mplx Price Performance

Shares of MPLX traded up $0.68 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $59.88. 130,680 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,788,549. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $56.60 and a 200-day moving average of $56.48. Mplx has a one year low of $47.80 and a one year high of $59.99. The firm has a market cap of $60.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.95, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $2.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. Mplx had a net margin of 36.38% and a return on equity of 32.74%. Mplx's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mplx will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY grew its position in shares of Mplx by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 2,315,921 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $123,601,000 after buying an additional 57,247 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Mplx by 126.0% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 43,234 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $2,307,000 after purchasing an additional 24,107 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mplx by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,343,689 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $125,083,000 after purchasing an additional 172,000 shares during the last quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT raised its stake in Mplx by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 1,883,800 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $100,538,000 after buying an additional 150,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Americana Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Mplx by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 760,306 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $40,578,000 after purchasing an additional 211,694 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 24.25% of the company's stock.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP NYSE: MPLX is a midstream master limited partnership that owns, operates and develops energy infrastructure primarily across the United States. The company provides a range of midstream services including the gathering, transportation, storage and distribution of crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). MPLX also operates processing and fractionation facilities and supplies logistics services that connect producers, refiners and end-use markets.

The partnership's asset base includes pipelines, storage terminals, rail and marine facilities, natural gas processing plants and NGL fractionators.

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