Encore Global Management LP Takes Position in Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP

Encore Global Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP) in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 2,000 shares of the pipeline company’s stock, valued at approximately $501,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Hardy Reed LLC raised its position in Targa Resources by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 4,321 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Targa Resources by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 526 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in Targa Resources by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,455 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,376,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp boosted its position in Targa Resources by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 340 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 2,210 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $520,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Targa Resources Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE:TRGP opened at $262.01 on Wednesday. Targa Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.14 and a 52-week high of $291.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $56.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $269.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $243.64.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.68 billion. Targa Resources had a return on equity of 71.00% and a net margin of 12.87%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 10.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Targa Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Targa Resources’s payout ratio is currently 50.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Targa Resources

In related news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total transaction of $2,713,687.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 66,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,019,292.32. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $242.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Targa Resources in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. US Capital Advisors downgraded shares of Targa Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $314.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.00.

Targa Resources Company Profile

Targa Resources Corporation (NYSE: TRGP) is a U.S.-focused midstream energy company that provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and marketing services for natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and condensate. Its operations span the midstream value chain, including gas gathering systems that collect production from wells, processing plants that separate and recover NGLs and other hydrocarbons, fractionation and purification facilities that prepare NGLs for market, and pipeline and terminal assets that move and store products for producers, refiners and other customers.

The company operates a network of pipelines, processing plants, fractionators and storage facilities that serve producers and consumers across major U.S.