Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Upgraded at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP - Free Report) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a research note published on Friday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $22.00 target price on the pipeline company's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut Plains GP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Plains GP from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Plains GP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $22.00 to $20.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Plains GP has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.11.

Plains GP Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE PAGP traded up $0.08 on Friday, hitting $20.01. The stock had a trading volume of 3,126,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,997,416. The business's fifty day moving average price is $18.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.80. The stock has a market cap of $3.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.54 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.92. Plains GP has a 52-week low of $15.78 and a 52-week high of $20.63.

Plains GP Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is an increase from Plains GP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.60%. Plains GP's dividend payout ratio is currently 149.41%.

Institutional Trading of Plains GP

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PAGP. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Plains GP in the third quarter valued at $57,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Plains GP in the third quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Plains GP by 10.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 6,990 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Plains GP in the 3rd quarter valued at $188,000. Finally, Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC purchased a new stake in Plains GP in the 3rd quarter valued at $200,000. 88.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.