Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $7.69 Million Holdings in Targa Resources, Inc. $TRGP

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its stake in shares of Targa Resources, Inc. (NYSE:TRGP) by 78.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,905 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 171,043 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Targa Resources were worth $7,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Targa Resources by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 205,934 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $35,849,000 after buying an additional 10,889 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 260.2% in the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 128,911 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $22,526,000 after acquiring an additional 93,119 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Targa Resources by 137.9% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 66,636 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $11,164,000 after acquiring an additional 38,626 shares during the last quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT raised its holdings in Targa Resources by 2.4% during the third quarter. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT now owns 682,300 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $114,313,000 after acquiring an additional 16,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc boosted its position in Targa Resources by 17.6% during the second quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 175,571 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $30,563,000 after purchasing an additional 26,318 shares during the last quarter. 92.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Gerald R. Shrader sold 2,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.21, for a total value of $498,327.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 29,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,356,748.81. This trade represents a 8.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider D. Scott Pryor sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.21, for a total transaction of $3,444,200.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 22,139 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,812,557.19. This represents a 47.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Targa Resources Price Performance

NYSE:TRGP opened at $201.54 on Friday. Targa Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.14 and a 52 week high of $211.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.91, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $182.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $170.02. The firm has a market cap of $43.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.87.

Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by ($0.02). Targa Resources had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 51.87%. The business had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Targa Resources, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Targa Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Targa Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on TRGP shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $266.00 price objective on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Targa Resources from $205.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $224.00 price objective on shares of Targa Resources in a research note on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $196.00 price objective on shares of Targa Resources in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Targa Resources from $214.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $213.50.

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.