Plains GP (NYSE:PAGP) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE:PAGP) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $24.89 and last traded at $24.8550, with a volume of 392758 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.56.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on PAGP shares. Mizuho set a $23.00 price objective on Plains GP in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Citigroup increased their price target on Plains GP from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research raised shares of Plains GP from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Plains GP from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Plains GP from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.30.

Plains GP Stock Up 1.2%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.19 and a beta of 0.46.

Plains GP Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were paid a $0.4175 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. This represents a $1.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.5%. Plains GP’s payout ratio is currently 172.16%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plains GP

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in Plains GP by 5.9% in the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 12,133 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 677 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Plains GP by 86.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,752,707 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $91,116,000 after buying an additional 1,738,351 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its position in Plains GP by 3.7% during the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 96,014 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,331,000 after buying an additional 3,390 shares during the period. Amundi purchased a new stake in Plains GP in the first quarter valued at approximately $734,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Plains GP by 33.2% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 233,102 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $5,660,000 after buying an additional 58,138 shares during the last quarter. 88.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Plains GP

Plains GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE: PAGP) serves as the general partner of Plains All American Pipeline, L.P., one of North America’s leading energy infrastructure companies. Through its ownership of a 2% general partner interest and incentive distribution rights (IDRs), Plains GP Holdings participates in the governance and cash distribution structure of a diversified portfolio of crude oil and natural gas liquids gathering, transportation, storage, and terminaling assets.

The company’s primary business activities include overseeing the strategic direction and capital allocation decisions for its affiliated midstream operations.