Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $280.00 and last traded at $278.6030, with a volume of 142460 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $273.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on TRGP. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Targa Resources from $249.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $285.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $327.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Targa Resources from $236.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.73.

Targa Resources Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $60.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $265.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.91.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.48 by ($0.27). Targa Resources had a net margin of 12.87% and a return on equity of 71.00%. The business had revenue of $4.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.68 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 10.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Targa Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This is an increase from Targa Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Targa Resources’s payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Targa Resources

In other news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total value of $2,713,687.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 66,492 shares in the company, valued at $17,019,292.32. This represents a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Targa Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hardy Reed LLC raised its holdings in shares of Targa Resources by 1.0% during the first quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 4,321 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Targa Resources by 4.1% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,146 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Targa Resources by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 526 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Targa Resources by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,455 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,376,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp raised its stake in Targa Resources by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 340 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Targa Resources

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.