Central Valley Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 160,441 Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE:PAGP)

Central Valley Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE:PAGP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 160,441 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $2,949,000. Plains GP accounts for approximately 1.3% of Central Valley Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Central Valley Advisors LLC owned 0.08% of Plains GP as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PAGP. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Plains GP by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 8,218,030 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $151,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629,008 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in Plains GP during the 3rd quarter worth $13,848,000. Yaupon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Plains GP in the 3rd quarter valued at $9,772,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Plains GP during the 2nd quarter valued at $5,734,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Plains GP during the 3rd quarter worth $4,013,000. 88.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on PAGP. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Plains GP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $22.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Plains GP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Plains GP from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Plains GP from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Plains GP from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.22.

Plains GP Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PAGP traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $21.43. 2,601,211 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,164,263. Plains GP Holdings, L.P. has a one year low of $15.78 and a one year high of $21.73. The stock has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.21 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $19.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.89.

Plains GP Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Plains GP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Plains GP's dividend payout ratio is presently 149.41%.

About Plains GP

Plains GP Holdings, L.P., through its subsidiary, Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., owns and operates midstream infrastructure systems in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Crude Oil and Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs). The company engages in the gathering and transporting crude oil and NGLs using pipelines, gathering systems, and trucks.