Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $27.00 to $31.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Kinder Morgan traded as high as $29.58 and last traded at $29.43, with a volume of 12100402 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.12.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on KMI. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Kinder Morgan from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on Kinder Morgan in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on Kinder Morgan from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Kinder Morgan in a report on Friday, January 10th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $26.00 price objective on Kinder Morgan in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kinder Morgan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $27.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director C Park Shaper sold 690,142 shares of Kinder Morgan stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $17,081,014.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,809,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $168,543,985.50. This trade represents a 9.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Amy W. Chronis acquired 2,241 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $24.89 per share, with a total value of $55,778.49. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 23,995 shares in the company, valued at $597,235.55. The trade was a 10.30 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 745,263 shares of company stock worth $18,578,014. Insiders own 12.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kinder Morgan

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KMI. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kinder Morgan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kinder Morgan in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kinder Morgan in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Planning Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in Kinder Morgan by 143.6% during the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 1,352 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. boosted its holdings in Kinder Morgan by 401.8% in the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,430 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,145 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.52% of the company’s stock.

Kinder Morgan Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $27.61 and a 200-day moving average of $23.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $67.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.94.

Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The pipeline company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.02). Kinder Morgan had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 16.76%. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.25 earnings per share. Kinder Morgan’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kinder Morgan, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kinder Morgan Company Profile

Kinder Morgan, Inc operates as an energy infrastructure company primarily in North America. The company operates through Natural Gas Pipelines, Products Pipelines, Terminals, and CO2 segments. The Natural Gas Pipelines segment owns and operates interstate and intrastate natural gas pipeline, and storage systems; natural gas gathering systems and natural gas processing and treating facilities; natural gas liquids fractionation facilities and transportation systems; and liquefied natural gas gasification, liquefaction, and storage facilities.