M&T Bank Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP)

M&T Bank Corp lessened its stake in shares of Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE:TRGP) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,893 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 1,003 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Targa Resources were worth $2,771,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Addison Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Targa Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 111.2% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 397 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Targa Resources during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Targa Resources by 124.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 534 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in shares of Targa Resources by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 565 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Targa Resources

In related news, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total transaction of $970,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 156,098 shares in the company, valued at $15,141,506. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.00, for a total value of $970,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 156,098 shares in the company, valued at $15,141,506. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Julie H. Boushka sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.66, for a total value of $244,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 71,808 shares in the company, valued at $7,012,769.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 81,966 shares of company stock valued at $7,987,215. 1.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Targa Resources from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $109.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Mizuho raised their price target on Targa Resources from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Targa Resources from $111.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $119.92.

Targa Resources Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:TRGP opened at $112.45 on Thursday. Targa Resources Corp. has a 52-week low of $67.36 and a 52-week high of $117.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.46. The company has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a PE ratio of 23.14 and a beta of 2.19.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The pipeline company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.26). Targa Resources had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 6.86%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.50 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Targa Resources Corp. will post 5.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This is a boost from Targa Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Targa Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.73%.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corp., together with its subsidiary, Targa Resources Partners LP, owns, operates, acquires, and develops a portfolio of complementary domestic midstream infrastructure assets in North America. It operates in two segments, Gathering and Processing, and Logistics and Transportation. The company is involved in gathering, compressing, treating, processing, transporting, and selling natural gas; storing, fractionating, treating, transporting, and selling natural gas liquids (NGL) and NGL products, including services to liquefied petroleum gas exporters; and gathering, storing, terminaling, purchasing, and selling crude oil.