Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stake in Archrock, Inc. (NYSE:AROC)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Archrock, Inc. (NYSE:AROC) by 136.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,753 shares of the energy company’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,486 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Archrock were worth $1,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Archrock by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 66,087 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,645,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in shares of Archrock by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 99,554 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,477,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Archrock by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 72,890 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,814,000 after purchasing an additional 3,541 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Archrock by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 84,700 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,108,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Archrock by 118,620.0% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 17,808 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 17,793 shares during the last quarter. 95.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Archrock Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AROC opened at $26.42 on Monday. Archrock, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.27 and a 52 week high of $30.44. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $24.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11.

Archrock (NYSE:AROC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The energy company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $347.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $342.98 million. Archrock had a net margin of 13.34% and a return on equity of 16.24%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Archrock, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Archrock announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, May 5th that permits the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to purchase up to 1.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Archrock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Archrock’s payout ratio is currently 64.41%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jason Ingersoll sold 42,036 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.49, for a total transaction of $1,029,461.64. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 275,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,757,060.39. This represents a 13.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AROC shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Archrock from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Sidoti raised shares of Archrock to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.67.

About Archrock

Archrock, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Contract Operations and Aftermarket Services. It engages in the designing, sourcing, owning, installing, operating, servicing, repairing, and maintaining of its owned fleet of natural gas compression equipment to provide natural gas compression services.