Green Plains, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Green Plains, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.4286.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GPRE. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Green Plains from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered Green Plains from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Green Plains in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $12.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday.

Green Plains Stock Up 11.7%

Shares of Green Plains stock opened at $19.23 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $15.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Green Plains has a twelve month low of $7.07 and a twelve month high of $19.65. The stock has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -58.27 and a beta of 1.19.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.43. Green Plains had a positive return on equity of 2.86% and a negative net margin of 0.80%.The firm had revenue of $445.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $532.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.14) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 25.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Green Plains will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Green Plains

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Green Plains in the 3rd quarter worth $67,000. Marex Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the fourth quarter valued at about $98,000. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the fourth quarter valued at about $98,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the second quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the fourth quarter worth about $100,000.

Green Plains Company Profile

Green Plains Inc is a leading producer of fuel-grade ethanol and related co-products in the United States. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, the company operates an integrated network of biorefineries that convert corn and other grains into renewable fuels. Through its production facilities, Green Plains supplies ethanol to domestic fuel markets and export channels, supporting efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote cleaner-burning transportation options.

Beyond ethanol, Green Plains manufactures a range of co-products that add value throughout the agricultural supply chain.