Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from Morgan Stanley

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) had its target price decreased by Morgan Stanley from $64.00 to $60.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

MPLX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus started 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. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Mplx from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Mplx from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Mplx in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mplx has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.30.

Mplx Stock Down 0.3%

MPLX stock opened at $56.60 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The company’s 50 day moving average is $58.01 and its 200 day moving average is $57.28. The stock has a market cap of $57.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 0.48. Mplx has a 1-year low of $51.60 and a 1-year high of $60.95.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The pipeline company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.02. Mplx had a net margin of 32.91% and a return on equity of 30.30%. The business had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. Mplx’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Mplx will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mplx Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 6th will be issued a $1.2111 dividend. This represents a $4.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 6th. This is a positive change from Mplx’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.0765. Mplx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 113.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MPLX. Energy Income Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx in the second quarter worth about $303,072,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Mplx by 45.5% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,151,905 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $65,739,000 after purchasing an additional 360,427 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Mplx by 45.5% in the second quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 486,025 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $27,378,000 after purchasing an additional 152,041 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its position in Mplx by 86.6% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 217,494 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $12,412,000 after purchasing an additional 100,927 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mplx by 65.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 217,494 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $12,412,000 after purchasing an additional 86,020 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 24.25% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Mplx

Here are a few of the latest stories about MPLX:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent Seeking Alpha articles made bullish cases for MPLX, citing its contracted cash flows, gas-related growth prospects, and appeal to income investors. These are analyst opinions, not company announcements. MPLX LP: Contracted Cash Flows And Gas Growth Earn A Buy Rating MPLX: Good Fit For Income Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays cut its price target to $61 from $63 but maintained an Overweight rating; Morgan Stanley also set a $60 target. The targets remain above the recent share price, although Barclays’ reduction tempers the positive signal. Barclays stock recommendations MPLX Given New $60.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha downgrade argued that MPLX’s high yield may be accompanied by slowing distribution growth, a potential concern for investors focused on income growth. MPLX: 8.5% Yield, But The Distribution Growth Party Is Ending

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP is a diversified midstream energy company formed by Marathon Petroleum in 2012. It owns and operates infrastructure that gathers, processes, transports and stores energy products, connecting producers and refiners with customers and markets. The company’s assets include natural gas and natural gas liquids gathering and processing facilities, pipelines and fractionation plants, as well as crude oil and refined-product pipelines, storage terminals and inland marine transport operations. Its network serves energy-producing and refining regions across the United States.