Plains All American Pipeline (NYSE:PAA) Lowered to Underperform Rating by Bank of America

Bank of America downgraded shares of Plains All American Pipeline (NYSE:PAA) from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $19.00 target price on the pipeline company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on PAA. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Plains All American Pipeline from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Mizuho set a $23.00 target price on Plains All American Pipeline in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays lowered their target price on Plains All American Pipeline from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Plains All American Pipeline in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective (down previously from $24.00) on shares of Plains All American Pipeline in a report on Friday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.40.

Plains All American Pipeline Stock Performance

Shares of PAA stock opened at $19.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.03 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $18.09 and a 200 day moving average of $17.59. Plains All American Pipeline has a 52 week low of $15.57 and a 52 week high of $20.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Plains All American Pipeline (NYSE:PAA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.01. Plains All American Pipeline had a net margin of 1.54% and a return on equity of 11.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Plains All American Pipeline will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Plains All American Pipeline Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.4175 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Plains All American Pipeline’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.5%. Plains All American Pipeline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 138.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plains All American Pipeline

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Plains All American Pipeline by 76.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,761 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 761 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Plains All American Pipeline during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Caldwell Trust Co purchased a new position in Plains All American Pipeline in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Plains All American Pipeline by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,263 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Plains All American Pipeline during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 41.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Plains All American Pipeline

Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (NYSE: PAA) is a prominent North American midstream energy company that specializes in the transportation, storage and marketing of crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and refined products. The partnership’s integrated infrastructure network supports the movement of hydrocarbons from major supply basins to domestic and export markets, providing connectivity between production areas, refineries and marine terminals. Plains All American’s services include long-haul and short-haul pipeline systems, inventory services and fee-based storage contracts, helping producers and refiners optimize supply chains and manage market access.

The company operates an extensive onshore pipeline network that spans major U.S.