Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $54.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mplx from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Mplx from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Mplx from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Mplx from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Mplx from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Mplx Trading Down 7.0 %

Shares of MPLX opened at $48.53 on Monday. Mplx has a fifty-two week low of $39.56 and a fifty-two week high of $54.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $53.11 and a 200 day moving average of $49.19. The firm has a market cap of $49.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Mplx had a net margin of 36.18% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mplx will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Mplx Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.9565 dividend. This represents a $3.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. Mplx’s payout ratio is presently 90.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mplx

In other Mplx news, VP Shawn M. Lyon bought 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $52.75 per share, with a total value of $211,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 25,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,334,522.25. This trade represents a 18.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mplx during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Mplx by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,135 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in Mplx during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Mplx by 139.6% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,785 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RE Dickinson Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Mplx by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. RE Dickinson Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,017 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 24.25% of the company’s stock.

About Mplx

MPLX LP engages in the operation of midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets, and distribution fuels services. It operates through the Logistics and Storage (L&S) and Gathering and Processing (G&P) segments. The Logistics and Storage segment transports, stores, distributes, and markets crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water.