Global Partners (NYSE:GLP) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Global Partners (NYSE:GLP) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

GLP has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Global Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Global Partners from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Global Partners in a report on Friday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.00.

Global Partners Stock Up 1.5%

GLP stock traded up $0.74 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $48.23. 14,096 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 44,441. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.15. Global Partners has a 12 month low of $39.58 and a 12 month high of $56.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.86 and a beta of 1.04.

Global Partners (NYSE:GLP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The energy company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $4.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.94 billion. Global Partners had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 0.53%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Global Partners will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Partners Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.3%. This is a boost from Global Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. Global Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 144.08%.

Insider Transactions at Global Partners

In other Global Partners news, COO Mark Romaine sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.39, for a total transaction of $355,425.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 151,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,184,750.51. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,063 shares of company stock valued at $1,146,471. Company insiders own 41.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Partners

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GLP. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Global Partners by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 5,999,844 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $251,093,000 after acquiring an additional 277,875 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Global Partners by 4.6% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,937,895 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $93,019,000 after acquiring an additional 85,347 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Global Partners by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 608,283 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $25,457,000 after purchasing an additional 67,337 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Global Partners by 16.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 389,277 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $18,685,000 after purchasing an additional 55,304 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its position in Global Partners by 26.6% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 235,024 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $11,281,000 after purchasing an additional 49,319 shares during the period. 38.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Global Partners

Global Partners LP is a publicly traded master limited partnership engaged in the wholesale distribution and retail marketing of petroleum products. The company sources refined petroleum products from major refineries and suppliers and transports them through an integrated network of pipelines, terminals and storage facilities. Global Partners focuses on delivering fuel and related services to commercial, industrial and residential customers, positioning itself as a key midstream and downstream energy operator in its core markets.

Through its extensive terminal network in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada, Global Partners supplies gasoline, diesel, home heating oil, kerosene, propane and biofuels to a broad customer base.