Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE:PAGP) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $24.36 and last traded at $24.3240, with a volume of 322400 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.07.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PAGP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded Plains GP from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Plains GP from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Plains GP from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Citigroup increased their target price on Plains GP from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Plains GP from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.60.

Plains GP Stock Up 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.15 and a beta of 0.56.

Plains GP Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $0.4175 per share. This represents a $1.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Plains GP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 129.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Plains GP

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Energy Income Partners LLC increased its holdings in Plains GP by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 10,196,673 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $185,987,000 after purchasing an additional 102,916 shares in the last quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Plains GP by 5.9% in the third quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 8,832,780 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $161,110,000 after purchasing an additional 494,259 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Plains GP by 1.5% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,386,299 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $80,006,000 after buying an additional 66,695 shares during the period. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT boosted its position in shares of Plains GP by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 3,725,000 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $71,296,000 after buying an additional 140,000 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of Plains GP by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,407,809 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $65,225,000 after buying an additional 58,003 shares in the last quarter. 88.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Plains GP

Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE: PAGP) serves as the general partner of Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., one of North America’s leading energy infrastructure companies. Through its ownership of a 2% general partner interest and incentive distribution rights (IDRs), Plains GP Holdings participates in the governance and cash distribution structure of a diversified portfolio of crude oil and natural gas liquids gathering, transportation, storage, and terminaling assets.

The company’s primary business activities include overseeing the strategic direction and capital allocation decisions for its affiliated midstream operations.