Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) Shares Down 5.3% – Should You Sell?

Green Plains, Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) traded down 5.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $15.65 and last traded at $15.57. 105,548 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 1,572,783 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Green Plains from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Green Plains from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Green Plains from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Green Plains from $7.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Green Plains from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.29.

Green Plains Stock Up 4.5%

The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.63. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of -8.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.31.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $428.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $536.56 million. Green Plains had a negative net margin of 5.80% and a negative return on equity of 8.70%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.86) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Green Plains, Inc. will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Green Plains

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 152,731 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 58,767 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 69.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 559,216 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,712,000 after purchasing an additional 229,353 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 6.9% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 42,977 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 2,759 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in Green Plains by 1.3% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 100,159 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $604,000 after buying an additional 1,246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Green Plains during the second quarter worth $297,000.

About Green Plains

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.