Mizuho Downgrades Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) to Hold

Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) was downgraded by research analysts at Mizuho from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on PARR. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Par Pacific from $77.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Par Pacific in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Par Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Par Pacific in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Par Pacific from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.14.

Par Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE PARR opened at $87.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.13 and a beta of 0.75. Par Pacific has a fifty-two week low of $33.21 and a fifty-two week high of $89.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.84.

Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $10.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.22 by $1.88. Par Pacific had a return on equity of 56.19% and a net margin of 9.94%.The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.54 earnings per share. Par Pacific’s quarterly revenue was up 56.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Par Pacific will post 23.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Par Pacific

In related news, CEO William Monteleone sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.30, for a total value of $3,252,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 457,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,167,677.10. This trade represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Danielle Mattiussi sold 3,278 shares of Par Pacific stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.29, for a total value of $220,576.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,875,910.62. The trade was a 10.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 54,248 shares of company stock valued at $4,394,057 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Par Pacific

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Par Pacific in the second quarter valued at about $3,017,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Par Pacific by 170.6% in the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 62,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,916,000 after buying an additional 39,404 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Par Pacific during the 1st quarter worth approximately $16,277,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its holdings in shares of Par Pacific by 93.1% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 111,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,252,000 after buying an additional 53,737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Par Pacific during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,839,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.15% of the company’s stock.

About Par Pacific

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc is an energy company engaged in refining, marketing and distributing transportation fuels and other petroleum products. Through its refining operations, the company produces gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other refined products for commercial, industrial and retail customers.

Par Pacific operates refineries and related energy infrastructure in the western United States, with a significant presence in Hawaii and additional refining and logistics operations in the Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountain regions.