Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Par Pacific shares gapped down before Monday trading, dropping from a $61.39 close to a $56.56 open and last trading at $58.86, about a 6.1% decline on volume of 355,829 shares.
• Analysts hold a consensus rating of Hold with an average target price of $51, reflecting mixed views (four Buys and five Holds) and recent modest target revisions.
• CEO William Monteleone sold 108,948 shares at an average $54.06 on March 16, reducing his ownership by 19.24% (insiders own 4.40%), signaling notable insider selling activity.

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PARR - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $61.39, but opened at $56.56. Par Pacific shares last traded at $58.8550, with a volume of 355,829 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on PARR. Zacks Research downgraded Par Pacific from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Par Pacific from $44.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Piper Sandler set a $57.00 price objective on Par Pacific in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Par Pacific in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Par Pacific from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.00.

Par Pacific Stock Down 6.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $43.12 and a 200-day moving average of $40.16.

Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by ($0.04). Par Pacific had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 30.19%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.79) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO William Monteleone sold 108,948 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.06, for a total value of $5,889,728.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 457,167 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,714,448.02. This trade represents a 19.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Par Pacific

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Par Pacific during the third quarter valued at $1,149,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Par Pacific by 38.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 354,439 shares of the company's stock worth $12,554,000 after buying an additional 98,524 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in Par Pacific by 43.8% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 50,438 shares of the company's stock worth $1,338,000 after buying an additional 15,362 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Par Pacific by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 705,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,001,000 after acquiring an additional 140,514 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Par Pacific by 89.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,438,677 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,168,000 after acquiring an additional 681,190 shares during the period. 92.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Par Pacific

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc NYSE: PARR is a diversified downstream energy company engaged in the refining, marketing and logistics of petroleum products. Through its subsidiaries, Par Pacific operates the Par Hawaii Refinery on the island of Oʻahu, which processes crude oil into transportation fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, as well as asphalt, petroleum coke and sulfur. In the Rocky Mountain region, the company owns and operates the Salt Lake City Refinery in Utah and associated logistics infrastructure, including pipelines and storage terminals, to support both crude supply and product distribution.

In marketing its refined products, Par Pacific maintains a network of branded and unbranded wholesale accounts across Hawaii and the U.S.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.