Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. stock reached a new 52-week high at $37.55 after UBS Group upgraded its price target from $23.00 to $37.00, maintaining a neutral rating.
• Insider selling has been noted, with significant transactions from senior executives, including sales that decreased their holdings by over 11% and 17%, respectively.
• The company posted $1.54 earnings per share for the last quarter, well above analysts' expectations of $0.74, despite a year-over-year revenue decline of 6.2%.

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PARR - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $23.00 to $37.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Par Pacific traded as high as $37.42 and last traded at $37.55, with a volume of 238948 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.22.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Par Pacific from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 11th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Par Pacific from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Par Pacific from $34.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Par Pacific from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Par Pacific in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Par Pacific presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Par Pacific

In other news, SVP Terrill Pitkin sold 5,164 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.97, for a total transaction of $144,437.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,153,007.31. This represents a 11.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffrey Ryan Hollis sold 5,228 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.55, for a total value of $180,627.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 24,679 shares in the company, valued at $852,659.45. This trade represents a 17.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 25,954 shares of company stock worth $863,048. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Par Pacific

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Par Pacific by 175.9% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,181 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 753 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Par Pacific by 70.2% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,391 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Par Pacific during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Par Pacific by 232.9% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Par Pacific by 157.4% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,596 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. 92.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Par Pacific Trading Up 8.4%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -134.83 and a beta of 1.82.

Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.80. The company had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.47 billion. Par Pacific had a negative return on equity of 1.79% and a negative net margin of 0.25%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Par Pacific

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc owns and operates energy and infrastructure businesses. The company operates through Refining, Retail, and Logistics segments. The Refining segment owns and operates refineries that produce gasoline, distillate, asphalt, and other products primarily for consumption in Kapolei, Hawaii, Newcastle, Wyoming, Tacoma, Washington, and Billings, Montana.

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