Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Lowered to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Sunday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Mplx from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Mplx from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Mplx from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Mplx from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $52.11.

Mplx Price Performance

NYSE:MPLX traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $53.17. 1,829,531 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,856,373. The stock's 50-day moving average is $51.46 and its 200-day moving average is $47.56. The firm has a market cap of $54.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Mplx has a twelve month low of $39.56 and a twelve month high of $54.79.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Mplx had a net margin of 36.18% and a return on equity of 31.94%. Mplx's revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mplx will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mplx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Mplx in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Mplx in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Mplx by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,135 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in Mplx in the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Mplx by 139.6% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,785 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 1,040 shares during the period. 24.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP engages in the operation of midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets, and distribution fuels services. It operates through the Logistics and Storage (L&S) and Gathering and Processing (G&P) segments. The Logistics and Storage segment transports, stores, distributes, and markets crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water.