Morgan Stanley Reaffirms "Equal Weight" Rating for NextDecade (NASDAQ:NEXT)

Key Points

• NextDecade's stock has been given an "equal weight" rating by Morgan Stanley, with a revised target price of $10.00, indicating a potential upside of 30.55% from its current trading price.
• Multiple research firms have recently upgraded their ratings on NextDecade, with Zacks Research moving from "strong sell" to "hold," and Cowen upgrading from "hold" to "buy."
• The company reported earnings per share of ($0.23), matching analysts' estimates, and has an average target price from analysts of $10.50, reflecting a "Moderate Buy" outlook.

NextDecade (NASDAQ:NEXT - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "equal weight" rating restated by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. They presently have a $10.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $15.00. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 46.03% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on NEXT. Zacks Research upgraded NextDecade from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded NextDecade to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. TD Cowen upgraded NextDecade from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Cowen upgraded NextDecade from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NextDecade currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $9.00.

NextDecade Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NextDecade stock traded down $0.12 on Friday, hitting $6.85. 2,900,049 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,440,743. NextDecade has a one year low of $4.59 and a one year high of $12.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average of $10.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $8.72. The company has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.82 and a beta of 1.35.

NextDecade (NASDAQ:NEXT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.23). As a group, sell-side analysts expect that NextDecade will post -0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at NextDecade

In related news, CEO Matthew K. Schatzman acquired 281,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $7.14 per share, with a total value of $2,009,910.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 5,246,316 shares in the company, valued at $37,458,696.24. This trade represents a 5.67% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NextDecade

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NEXT. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in shares of NextDecade by 6.5% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,255,874 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,190,000 after acquiring an additional 76,238 shares during the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC boosted its position in NextDecade by 98.8% in the second quarter. Castleark Management LLC now owns 106,250 shares of the company's stock worth $947,000 after purchasing an additional 52,810 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in NextDecade by 89.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 14,910 shares of the company's stock worth $133,000 after purchasing an additional 7,024 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in NextDecade by 6.2% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 55,444 shares of the company's stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in NextDecade by 249.2% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 30,842 shares of the company's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 22,009 shares during the last quarter. 66.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NextDecade Company Profile

NextDecade Corp. is a development company.