Antero Midstream (NYSE:AM) Upgraded to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Antero Midstream (NYSE:AM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on AM. Capital One Financial upgraded shares of Antero Midstream from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Antero Midstream from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Antero Midstream from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $24.00 price target on Antero Midstream in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Antero Midstream from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Antero Midstream currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.20.

Antero Midstream Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:AM opened at $21.47 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.12 and a beta of 0.72. Antero Midstream has a 1 year low of $16.96 and a 1 year high of $23.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $21.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.55.

Antero Midstream (NYSE:AM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.02). Antero Midstream had a net margin of 53.45% and a return on equity of 33.53%. The business had revenue of $327.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $340.62 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Antero Midstream will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Antero Midstream Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 28th will be paid a $0.2250 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Antero Midstream’s payout ratio is presently 63.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Brooks J. Klimley sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.27, for a total value of $106,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 68,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,450,699.08. This trade represents a 6.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Sheri Pearce sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.01, for a total value of $352,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 83,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,846,639. The trade was a 16.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Antero Midstream during the second quarter valued at about $869,045,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Antero Midstream by 11.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,129,288 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $208,148,000 after acquiring an additional 920,948 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its stake in shares of Antero Midstream by 2.9% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 3,551,511 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $71,598,000 after acquiring an additional 100,293 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Antero Midstream in the second quarter worth about $49,883,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Antero Midstream in the second quarter worth about $46,007,000. 53.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Antero Midstream

Antero Midstream Corporation (NYSE: AM) owns, operates and develops midstream energy infrastructure that supports natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil production. The company’s services include gathering and compression, water handling and other infrastructure activities that help producers transport hydrocarbons from well sites to processing and takeaway facilities.

Antero Midstream primarily serves Antero Resources’ operations in the Appalachian Basin, particularly in West Virginia and Ohio.