Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Green Plains in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Green Plains from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Green Plains in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Green Plains in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.43.

Green Plains Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:GPRE opened at $15.07 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 9.48 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Green Plains has a 12-month low of $8.65 and a 12-month high of $19.65. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.87.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.29. Green Plains had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 6.78%.The firm had revenue of $446.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $542.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($1.09) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Green Plains will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Green Plains

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Green Plains during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $156,703,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Green Plains in the 1st quarter valued at $1,166,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Green Plains by 8,139.7% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 94,509 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,454,000 after buying an additional 93,362 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Green Plains during the second quarter worth $4,193,000. Finally, J. Goldman & Co LP acquired a new stake in Green Plains during the second quarter valued at $2,115,000.

Green Plains Company Profile

Green Plains Inc (NASDAQ: GPRE) is an agtech and biorefining company that converts sustainably sourced agricultural commodities, primarily corn, into value-added products. Its operations produce renewable ethanol, which is used as a transportation fuel and fuel additive, along with distillers grains and other feed ingredients for livestock and poultry markets.

The company also produces renewable corn oil for feed and fuel applications and develops higher-protein ingredients designed for animal nutrition and other specialty markets.