PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) Trading Up 5.8% on Analyst Upgrade

PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE:PBF)’s share price was up 5.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Freedom Capital upgraded the stock to a hold rating. The company traded as high as $51.26 and last traded at $51.2830. Approximately 135,546 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 96% from the average daily volume of 3,363,235 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.46.

PBF has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded PBF Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of PBF Energy from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of PBF Energy from $36.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of PBF Energy in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of PBF Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $36.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at PBF Energy

In other news, insider Control Empresarial De Capital sold 570,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.36, for a total value of $26,425,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 17,142,128 shares in the company, valued at $794,709,054.08. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 2,791,570 shares of company stock valued at $126,106,586 over the last quarter. 5.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting PBF Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting PBF Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PBF Energy has been benefiting from stronger refining conditions, as rising oil prices, tighter fuel inventories, and improving crack spreads have boosted sentiment across refiner stocks. The company’s Martinez refinery recovery has also improved the operating outlook, which may support earnings expectations. PBF Energy Jumps as Refining-Margin Tailwinds Lift Refiner Shares
• Positive Sentiment: One recent analyst action was constructive: Freedom Capital upgraded PBF Energy to “hold,” while other commentary highlighted the stock’s growth and margin sensitivity, which can reinforce bullish trading interest. Zacks.com
• Neutral Sentiment: Market coverage noted that analysts remain divided on PBF Energy, with several ratings clustered around hold/neutral, suggesting the recent strength is driven more by industry conditions than by a broad consensus upgrade. Analysts’ Opinions Are Mixed on These Energy Stocks: PBF Energy (PBF) and Devon Energy (DVN)
• Negative Sentiment: Investor sentiment may be capped by continued insider selling: Control Empresarial De Capital sold 200,000 shares, adding to a pattern of repeated insider disposals over the past several months. Insider Selling: PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) Insider Sells $9,828,000.00 in Stock

Institutional Trading of PBF Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PBF Energy by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,781 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $180,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PBF Energy by 3.9% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,850 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in PBF Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 9,900 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the period. Next Level Private LLC lifted its position in PBF Energy by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Next Level Private LLC now owns 66,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in PBF Energy by 5.1% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 7,885 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PBF Energy Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.16 and a beta of 0.11. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.08.

PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.88) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $7.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.32 billion. PBF Energy had a negative return on equity of 4.12% and a net margin of 1.46%.PBF Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($3.53) earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that PBF Energy Inc. will post 8.55 EPS for the current year.

PBF Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. PBF Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.65%.

About PBF Energy

PBF Energy, Inc is an independent petroleum refiner organized in 2008 and headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey. The company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in July 2012 under the ticker symbol PBF. Since its formation, PBF Energy has grown through acquisitions and operational optimization, positioning itself as a leading supplier of refined petroleum products in the United States.

The company owns and operates five refineries located along the U.S. Gulf Coast, East Coast and in the Pacific Northwest, with a combined crude oil processing capacity of approximately 900,000 barrels per day.