Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Sets New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Targa Resources hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $280.00, as the stock rose about 1.5% on the day.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 17 Buy ratings and 2 Hold ratings; the average target price is $282.73, slightly above the stock’s recent trading level.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share from $1.00, but its latest earnings missed expectations on both EPS and revenue.

Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $280.00 and last traded at $278.6030, with a volume of 142460 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $273.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TRGP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. US Capital Advisors lowered shares of Targa Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $268.00 price objective on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $318.00 target price on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $327.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $282.73.

Targa Resources Stock Up 1.5%

The company has a market cap of $59.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.72. The business's fifty day moving average is $265.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.55.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.48 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.68 billion. Targa Resources had a return on equity of 71.00% and a net margin of 12.87%. Equities analysts predict that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 10.75 EPS for the current year.

Targa Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is an increase from Targa Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. Targa Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

Insider Activity at Targa Resources

In other Targa Resources news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total value of $2,713,687.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 66,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,019,292.32. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Targa Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TRGP. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Targa Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $735,758,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Targa Resources by 48.5% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,290,099 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $607,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,246 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Targa Resources during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $121,426,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Targa Resources by 28.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,151,993 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $790,299,000 after buying an additional 688,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. increased its position in Targa Resources by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 3,389,006 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $625,272,000 after buying an additional 572,562 shares during the period. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corporation NYSE: TRGP is a U.S.-focused midstream energy company that provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and marketing services for natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and condensate. Its operations span the midstream value chain, including gas gathering systems that collect production from wells, processing plants that separate and recover NGLs and other hydrocarbons, fractionation and purification facilities that prepare NGLs for market, and pipeline and terminal assets that move and store products for producers, refiners and other customers.

The company operates a network of pipelines, processing plants, fractionators and storage facilities that serve producers and consumers across major U.S.

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