Pembina Pipeline (NYSE:PBA) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Pembina Pipeline Corp. (NYSE:PBA) (TSE:PPL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $51.56 and last traded at $51.4320, with a volume of 945042 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $51.29.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PBA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Pembina Pipeline from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a report on Friday, July 3rd. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a report on Thursday, May 21st. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a report on Thursday. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.00.

Pembina Pipeline Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $29.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69 and a beta of 0.57.

Pembina Pipeline (NYSE:PBA) (TSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.07. Pembina Pipeline had a return on equity of 11.47% and a net margin of 22.22%.The company had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Pembina Pipeline Corp. will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pembina Pipeline Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.735 dividend. This represents a $2.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Pembina Pipeline’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Pembina Pipeline’s payout ratio is currently 110.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pembina Pipeline

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PBA. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,233,442 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,037,512,000 after acquiring an additional 541,615 shares during the period. FIL Ltd grew its stake in Pembina Pipeline by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 13,978,558 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $532,541,000 after purchasing an additional 359,109 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Pembina Pipeline by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,828,960 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $375,236,000 after buying an additional 94,655 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 8,620,307 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $329,245,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304,227 shares during the period. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 12.6% in the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 6,425,487 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $258,724,000 after buying an additional 717,773 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.37% of the company’s stock.

Pembina Pipeline Company Profile

Pembina Pipeline Corporation (NYSE: PBA) is a North American energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates midstream assets that transport, store and process hydrocarbons. Its core business focuses on the transportation of crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and condensate, along with gas processing, fractionation, storage and related marketing services. Pembina serves producers, refiners and other energy companies by providing pipeline capacity, terminal services and midstream solutions that link upstream production to downstream markets and export facilities.

The company’s asset base is concentrated in Western Canada, including major operations in Alberta and British Columbia, and it also has operations and commercial activities that extend into the United States.