Benchmark Reaffirms "Buy" Rating for Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP)

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by research analysts at Benchmark in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $29.00 target price on the energy company's stock, up from their previous target price of $27.00. Benchmark's target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.94% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on ARLP. StockNews.com lowered Alliance Resource Partners from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Singular Research downgraded shares of Alliance Resource Partners from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd.

Alliance Resource Partners Price Performance

Shares of ARLP stock traded down $0.66 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 565,680 shares, compared to its average volume of 476,271. The firm's 50-day moving average is $26.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.64. The company has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.56 and a beta of 1.16. Alliance Resource Partners has a 1-year low of $18.32 and a 1-year high of $30.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.36.

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The energy company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.38). Alliance Resource Partners had a return on equity of 23.74% and a net margin of 18.52%. On average, research analysts predict that Alliance Resource Partners will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Timothy J. Whelan sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total value of $280,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 157,946 shares in the company, valued at $4,422,488. This represents a 5.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 16.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Alliance Resource Partners

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Alliance Resource Partners by 1.2% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 34,283 shares of the energy company's stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 46,905 shares of the energy company's stock worth $1,173,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Cadent Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alliance Resource Partners by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Cadent Capital Advisors LLC now owns 23,816 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. BCS Wealth Management raised its holdings in Alliance Resource Partners by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. BCS Wealth Management now owns 19,971 shares of the energy company's stock worth $525,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 17,203 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 18.11% of the company's stock.

About Alliance Resource Partners

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P., a diversified natural resource company, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Illinois Basin Coal Operations, Appalachia Coal Operations, Oil & Gas Royalties, and Coal Royalties.