Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) Trading 11.3% Higher on Earnings Beat

Green Plains, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) shares shot up 11.3% during mid-day trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $13.29 and last traded at $14.0870. 32,192 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 98% from the average session volume of 1,319,872 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.66.

The specialty chemicals company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $428.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $536.56 million. Green Plains had a negative net margin of 8.37% and a negative return on equity of 16.78%. The business’s revenue was down 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.86) earnings per share.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPRE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Green Plains from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Roth Mkm downgraded shares of Green Plains from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $10.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Green Plains in a research note on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Green Plains in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.63.

Institutional Trading of Green Plains

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $46,025,000 after purchasing an additional 645,170 shares during the period. Clifford Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Green Plains by 201.2% in the second quarter. Clifford Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,386,961 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $8,363,000 after purchasing an additional 926,553 shares in the last quarter. Kailix Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Green Plains by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Kailix Advisors LLC now owns 1,369,211 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $13,418,000 after buying an additional 213,888 shares in the last quarter. Wolf Hill Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Green Plains by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wolf Hill Capital Management LP now owns 1,291,815 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $11,355,000 after acquiring an additional 211,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP grew its stake in Green Plains by 76.3% in the 2nd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 1,165,273 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $7,027,000 after buying an additional 504,433 shares during the last quarter.

Green Plains Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $10.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.95. The firm has a market cap of $985.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.54.

About Green Plains

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.