Archrock (NYSE:AROC) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Archrock, Inc. (NYSE:AROC) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $32.87 and last traded at $32.34, with a volume of 1971861 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.05.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AROC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Archrock from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Archrock from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Archrock from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Archrock in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Archrock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $32.40.

Archrock Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Archrock Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Archrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Archrock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AROC. Financial Security Advisor Inc. boosted its stake in Archrock by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Financial Security Advisor Inc. now owns 12,000 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Archrock by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 10,290 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Severin Investments LLC increased its position in Archrock by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Severin Investments LLC now owns 20,111 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $523,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Archrock by 71.0% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 971 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Archrock by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 15,030 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. 95.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Archrock Company Profile

Archrock, Inc is a Houston‐based provider of natural gas compression services and equipment to the oil and gas industry in North America. Founded in 2004, the company supplies both short‐term rentals and long‐term contracts for compression solutions, serving upstream and midstream producers. Archrock’s offerings include engineered compression systems, aftermarket parts, maintenance and field services designed to optimize wellhead and pipeline operations.

The company’s core business activities focus on the design, manufacture, rental and sale of gas compression equipment.