PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE:PBF - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Friday after Piper Sandler raised their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $61.00. The stock had previously closed at $60.96, but opened at $62.30. Piper Sandler currently has a neutral rating on the stock. PBF Energy shares last traded at $61.46, with a volume of 112,265 shares.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of PBF Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of PBF Energy from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. Citigroup began coverage on PBF Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded PBF Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. Finally, Mizuho downgraded PBF Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.10.

Insider Activity

In other PBF Energy news, insider Control Empresarial De Capital acquired 12,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $43.86 per share, for a total transaction of $535,092.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 14,345,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $629,180,384.28. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Control Empresarial De Capital bought 12,200 shares of PBF Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $43.86 per share, for a total transaction of $535,092.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 14,345,198 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $629,180,384.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Connor Thomas L. O sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.07, for a total value of $2,202,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 160,338 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,829,813.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 1,268,200 shares of company stock worth $54,251,872 and sold 180,000 shares worth $10,074,600. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PBF Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PBF. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in PBF Energy by 527.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 526,671 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,193,000 after buying an additional 442,730 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PBF Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,936,000. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in shares of PBF Energy by 199.3% in the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 16,281 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $872,000 after purchasing an additional 10,842 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of PBF Energy by 91.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 904,537 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $48,420,000 after purchasing an additional 431,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of PBF Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.29% of the company's stock.

PBF Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $52.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a PE ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 1.73.

PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.49). PBF Energy had a net margin of 5.59% and a return on equity of 23.69%. The business had revenue of $9.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.41 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that PBF Energy Inc. will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PBF Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. PBF Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.08%.

About PBF Energy

PBF Energy Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in refining and supplying petroleum products. The company operates in two segments, Refining and Logistics. It produces gasoline, ultra-low-sulfur diesel, heating oil, diesel fuel, jet fuel, lubricants, petrochemicals, and asphalt, as well as unbranded transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks, blending components, and other petroleum products from crude oil.