Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $7.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Green Plains from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Green Plains in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Green Plains from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $14.29.

Green Plains Trading Up 0.2%

GPRE opened at $16.81 on Tuesday. Green Plains has a twelve month low of $3.97 and a twelve month high of $18.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company has a fifty day moving average of $16.15 and a 200-day moving average of $12.87. The stock has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of -50.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.43. Green Plains had a negative net margin of 0.80% and a positive return on equity of 2.86%. The company had revenue of $445.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $532.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($1.14) earnings per share. Green Plains’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Green Plains will post 2.1 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Green Plains

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GPRE. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Green Plains in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,561,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Green Plains by 112.6% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,823,740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $17,873,000 after purchasing an additional 966,069 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Green Plains by 155.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,114,743 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,338,000 after purchasing an additional 678,515 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Green Plains by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,696,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $46,025,000 after purchasing an additional 645,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thomist Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Green Plains by 619.8% during the fourth quarter. Thomist Capital Management LP now owns 747,192 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $7,270,000 after purchasing an additional 643,392 shares in the last quarter.

Green Plains Company Profile

Green Plains Inc is a leading producer of fuel-grade ethanol and related co-products in the United States. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, the company operates an integrated network of biorefineries that convert corn and other grains into renewable fuels. Through its production facilities, Green Plains supplies ethanol to domestic fuel markets and export channels, supporting efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote cleaner-burning transportation options.

Beyond ethanol, Green Plains manufactures a range of co-products that add value throughout the agricultural supply chain.