Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

Shares of Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $63.80.

Several research firms have recently commented on MPLX. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Mplx in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Mplx from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Mplx from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Mplx in a report on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded Mplx from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in Mplx in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mplx by 81.5% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 559 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mplx in the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. 24.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mplx Stock Performance

Shares of MPLX opened at $57.37 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $58.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.18. Mplx has a one year low of $47.80 and a one year high of $60.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $58.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34, a P/E/G ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.49.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.06. Mplx had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 35.75%.The firm had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Mplx will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a $1.0765 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $4.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.5%. Mplx’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.69%.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX) is a diversified master limited partnership that owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure in the United States. The company provides transportation, storage and logistics services for crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs), primarily under long-term commercial arrangements with energy producers, refiners and other customers.

MPLX’s assets include crude oil and refined-products pipelines, storage facilities, marine and inland waterway terminals, rail and truck transportation operations, and gathering and processing systems.