Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PARR) reached a new 52-week high of $36.26 after Raymond James Financial raised their price target from $36.00 to $38.00, maintaining an outperform rating.
• Insider selling occurred with notable transactions, including Jeffrey Ryan Hollis and Shawn David Flores reducing their stakes in the company by approximately 17% each.
• Par Pacific's latest quarterly earnings reported $1.54 earnings per share, significantly exceeding estimates, with revenues also surpassing expectations despite a year-over-year decline of 6.2%.

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PARR - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Raymond James Financial raised their price target on the stock from $36.00 to $38.00. Raymond James Financial currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Par Pacific traded as high as $36.26 and last traded at $36.15, with a volume of 1559218 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.52.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on PARR. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Par Pacific in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Par Pacific to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Mizuho set a $34.00 price target on shares of Par Pacific and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Par Pacific from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Par Pacific from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $28.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jeffrey Ryan Hollis sold 5,228 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.55, for a total transaction of $180,627.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 24,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at $852,659.45. The trade was a 17.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Shawn David Flores sold 8,062 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total value of $278,139.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 39,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,348,570.50. This trade represents a 17.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,954 shares of company stock worth $796,308. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Par Pacific

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Par Pacific during the 1st quarter worth about $194,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Par Pacific by 54.0% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,601 shares of the company's stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 6,522 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Par Pacific by 352.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,556 shares of the company's stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 5,887 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new stake in Par Pacific during the first quarter worth approximately $219,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Par Pacific by 32.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,205,756 shares of the company's stock worth $17,194,000 after buying an additional 296,536 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.15% of the company's stock.

Par Pacific Trading Up 7.8%

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $31.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a PE ratio of -129.10 and a beta of 1.82.

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

Par Pacific Company Profile

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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