Stocks

Royal Bank of Canada Sees Positive Outlook for Mplx Stock

Published March 19, 2025

On March 19th, 2025, Mplx (NYSE:MPLX) received an upgraded target price from analysts at Royal Bank of Canada, who raised it from $55.00 to $58.00. This update was shared in a research note directed at investors, indicating a strong outlook for the pipeline company’s stock. The brokerage currently maintains an “outperform” rating on Mplx, which suggests that they believe the stock will perform better than the overall market. Based on the new target price, there is a potential upside of approximately 6.51% from Mplx’s last closing price.

Other financial analysts have also provided updates regarding Mplx's stock. For example, Morgan Stanley recently increased their price target from $56.00 to $62.00 while assigning the stock an “equal weight” rating as of March 11th. Similarly, Truist Financial raised their price objective from $48.00 to $55.00, giving the stock a “buy” rating in a note published on November 19th. Additionally, Wells Fargo lifted its price target from $54.00 to $59.00, rating the stock as “overweight,” while Barclays increased their target from $52.00 to $55.00 with an “overweight” rating on March 14th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price target from $55.00 to $60.00 and also maintains an “outperform” rating for Mplx. Overall, one analyst has a sell rating, another a hold rating, and nine analysts have a buy rating for the stock, indicating a generally positive sentiment. Currently, the consensus rating for Mplx according to MarketBeat.com is “Moderate Buy,” with a target price average of $54.00.

Mplx Stock Performance

As of Monday, shares of Mplx opened at $54.46. The fifty-day moving average stands at $52.37, while its two-hundred day moving average is noted at $48.27. Mplx possesses a market capitalization of approximately $55.68 billion, a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 12.93, and a price-to-earnings-growth (PEG) ratio of 1.69. The stock has a beta of 1.40, indicating a higher volatility compared to the market. The company reports a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99, along with a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Over the past year, Mplx has seen a low of $39.56 and a high of $54.87 in its stock price.

On February 4th, Mplx presented its quarterly earnings results, announcing earnings per share (EPS) of $1.07, which surpassed analysts’ expectations of $1.04 by three cents. The company’s return on equity was recorded at 31.94%, with a net margin of 36.18%. Total revenue for that quarter hit $3.06 billion, slightly missing the anticipated $3.07 billion. Compared to the same quarter in the previous year, Mplx’s revenue showed a growth of 3.3%. Analysts project that Mplx is likely to report earnings per share of 4.41 for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Mplx

In insider news, VP Shawn M. Lyon purchased 4,000 shares of Mplx on March 7th, acquiring them at an average price of $52.75 each, totaling approximately $211,000. Following this acquisition, Lyon now owns 25,299 shares valued at around $1,334,522, representing an 18.78% increase in their stock ownership. This transaction was reported in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Institutional Trading of Mplx

Institutional investors have shown interest in Mplx shares recently. In the last quarter, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position valued at about $31,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased their position by 56.3%, now holding 1,135 shares worth $54,000 after adding 409 shares recently. Cedar Wealth Management LLC also entered a new stake in Mplx worth approximately $51,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought new shares valued at about $56,000 in the same quarter. Additionally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. expanded their stake by 139.6%, now owning 1,785 shares worth $85,000 after purchasing an extra 1,040 shares. Currently, 24.25% of Mplx stock is held by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mplx Company Overview

MPLX LP operates within the midstream energy infrastructure and logistics sectors, offering services such as transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing of crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water, primarily through its Logistics and Storage (L&S) and Gathering and Processing (G&P) segments.

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