Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Separately, Benchmark restated a buy rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Alliance Resource Partners in a research note on Tuesday.

Alliance Resource Partners Trading Up 1.7 %

NASDAQ ARLP opened at $23.25 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $20.34 and its 200 day moving average is $20.94. Alliance Resource Partners has a twelve month low of $17.05 and a twelve month high of $24.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The energy company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.28. Alliance Resource Partners had a net margin of 23.36% and a return on equity of 32.06%. The firm had revenue of $651.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $625.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Alliance Resource Partners will post 3.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliance Resource Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. Alliance Resource Partners’s payout ratio is 61.27%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 39,564 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Alliance Resource Partners by 40.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 39,235 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $884,000 after purchasing an additional 11,318 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 91.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 282,576 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $6,366,000 after buying an additional 135,226 shares during the period. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC bought a new position in Alliance Resource Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,035,000. Finally, ING Groep NV increased its stake in Alliance Resource Partners by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 420,000 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $9,463,000 after buying an additional 31,000 shares during the period. 18.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alliance Resource Partners Company Profile

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P., a diversified natural resource company, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Illinois Basin Coal Operations, Appalachia Coal Operations, Oil & Gas Royalties, and Coal Royalties.