Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) Given New $223.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) had its target price increased by The Goldman Sachs Group from $185.00 to $223.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the pipeline company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 28.81% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Targa Resources from $173.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Targa Resources from $172.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. US Capital Advisors cut Targa Resources from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Targa Resources in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $182.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Targa Resources from $182.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $181.43.

Targa Resources Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:TRGP traded up $1.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $173.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 433,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,657,345. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 2.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $183.18 and a 200-day moving average of $153.82. Targa Resources has a 52-week low of $81.03 and a 52-week high of $209.87.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. Targa Resources had a return on equity of 27.59% and a net margin of 7.65%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.97 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Targa Resources will post 6.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Targa Resources

In related news, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.33, for a total value of $5,709,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 82,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,793,393.07. This represents a 26.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Julie H. Boushka sold 3,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.74, for a total value of $621,812.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 35,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,703,175.82. The trade was a 8.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 183,260 shares of company stock valued at $29,661,212. Insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRGP. MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 65.1% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 25,615 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,791,000 after acquiring an additional 10,100 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LP acquired a new stake in Targa Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,323,000. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Targa Resources in the third quarter valued at about $11,042,000. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Targa Resources by 12.7% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 25,569 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,784,000 after purchasing an additional 2,890 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its position in shares of Targa Resources by 73.3% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 11,984 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,774,000 after buying an additional 5,067 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.13% of the company’s stock.

About Targa Resources

Targa Resources Corp., together with its subsidiary, Targa Resources Partners LP, owns, operates, acquires, and develops a portfolio of complementary domestic midstream infrastructure assets in North America. It operates in two segments, Gathering and Processing, and Logistics and Transportation. The company is involved in gathering, compressing, treating, processing, transporting, and selling natural gas; storing, fractionating, treating, transporting, and selling natural gas liquids (NGL) and NGL products, including services to liquefied petroleum gas exporters; and gathering, storing, terminaling, purchasing, and selling crude oil.