Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Now Covered by Analysts at Erste Group Bank

Equities research analysts at Erste Group Bank started coverage on shares of Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $268.00 price target on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. US Capital Advisors downgraded Targa Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on Targa Resources from $262.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Targa Resources from $249.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $272.73.

Targa Resources Price Performance

TRGP opened at $266.05 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $258.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $228.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.64, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $57.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.72. Targa Resources has a 1 year low of $144.14 and a 1 year high of $280.00.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.48 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.68 billion. Targa Resources had a net margin of 12.87% and a return on equity of 71.00%. Sell-side analysts predict that Targa Resources will post 10.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Targa Resources

In related news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 10,602 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.96, for a total transaction of $2,713,687.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 66,492 shares in the company, valued at $17,019,292.32. This represents a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Targa Resources

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in Targa Resources by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 18,423 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $3,693,000 after acquiring an additional 5,327 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 157.4% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,931 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $788,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,697 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $644,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,521 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $787,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 31,881 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $5,550,000 after purchasing an additional 3,163 shares during the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corporation (NYSE: TRGP) is a U.S.-focused midstream energy company that provides gathering, processing, transportation, storage and marketing services for natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and condensate. Its operations span the midstream value chain, including gas gathering systems that collect production from wells, processing plants that separate and recover NGLs and other hydrocarbons, fractionation and purification facilities that prepare NGLs for market, and pipeline and terminal assets that move and store products for producers, refiners and other customers.

The company operates a network of pipelines, processing plants, fractionators and storage facilities that serve producers and consumers across major U.S.