Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $49.00 to $51.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Mplx traded as high as $44.53 and last traded at $44.53, with a volume of 382103 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $44.05.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded Mplx from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 11th. Barclays reduced their price target on Mplx from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Mplx from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of Mplx in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Mplx has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $46.56.

Institutional Trading of Mplx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx during the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Mplx during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mplx during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mplx by 73.3% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,066 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the period. 24.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mplx Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a fifty day moving average of $42.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.37.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.96 billion. Mplx had a net margin of 35.95% and a return on equity of 32.68%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Mplx Lp will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Mplx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.63%.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Logistics and Storage, and Gathering and Processing. The company is involved in the gathering, processing, and transportation of natural gas; gathering, transportation, fractionation, storage, and marketing of natural gas liquids; gathering, storage, transportation, and distribution of crude oil and refined products, as well as other hydrocarbon-based products and renewables; and sale of residue gas and condensate.