Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) Downgraded to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on MPLX. Bank of America started coverage on Mplx in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Mplx from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Mplx from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Mplx from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Mplx from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.67.

Mplx Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MPLX traded up $1.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $46.42. 2,431,344 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,329,586. The business’s fifty day moving average is $44.01 and its 200-day moving average is $42.49. Mplx has a 52-week low of $35.07 and a 52-week high of $46.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.05). Mplx had a return on equity of 32.68% and a net margin of 35.95%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Mplx will post 4.3 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mplx

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MPLX. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Mplx by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 48,333 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,149,000 after buying an additional 5,766 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mplx by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,701 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $876,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV increased its holdings in Mplx by 69.8% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 6,628,400 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $294,699,000 after buying an additional 2,725,000 shares in the last quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC increased its holdings in Mplx by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 25,095 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,116,000 after buying an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Mplx by 12.0% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,171 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,475,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550 shares during the last quarter. 24.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mplx Company Profile

MPLX LP owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Logistics and Storage, and Gathering and Processing. The company is involved in the gathering, processing, and transportation of natural gas; gathering, transportation, fractionation, storage, and marketing of natural gas liquids; gathering, storage, transportation, and distribution of crude oil and refined products, as well as other hydrocarbon-based products and renewables; and sale of residue gas and condensate.