Analysts Set Pembina Pipeline Co. (NYSE:PBA) Target Price at $56.50

Pembina Pipeline Co. (NYSE:PBA) (TSE:PPL) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the six research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $56.50.

PBA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Barclays started coverage on shares of Pembina Pipeline in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Raymond James assumed coverage on Pembina Pipeline in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on Pembina Pipeline from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Pembina Pipeline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th.

Pembina Pipeline Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of PBA stock opened at $36.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $21.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05 and a beta of 1.24. Pembina Pipeline has a 1 year low of $32.81 and a 1 year high of $43.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $40.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.67.

Pembina Pipeline Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is a positive change from Pembina Pipeline’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.58%. Pembina Pipeline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.30%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pembina Pipeline

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 97.2% in the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 8,938,488 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $331,439,000 after buying an additional 4,405,792 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in Pembina Pipeline by 56.9% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 8,387,525 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $311,142,000 after acquiring an additional 3,043,200 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Pembina Pipeline by 8.1% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,405,991 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $264,315,000 after purchasing an additional 481,285 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 4,759,869 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $176,571,000 after purchasing an additional 44,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. boosted its holdings in shares of Pembina Pipeline by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 4,542,997 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $168,512,000 after purchasing an additional 291,486 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.37% of the company’s stock.

Pembina Pipeline Company Profile

Pembina Pipeline Corporation provides energy transportation and midstream services. It operates through three segments: Pipelines, Facilities, and Marketing & New Ventures. The Pipelines segment operates conventional, oil sands and heavy oil, and transmission assets with a transportation capacity of 2.9 millions of barrels of oil equivalent per day, the ground storage capacity of 10 millions of barrels, and rail terminalling capacity of approximately 105 thousands of barrels of oil equivalent per day serving markets and basins across North America.