Kinder Morgan Slides 1.23% with 270th-Ranked Trading Volume Amid Diverging Earnings Forecasts and Institutional Shifts

On August 12, 2025, Kinder Morgan (KMI) fell 1.23% with a trading volume of $0.4 billion, ranking 270th in market activity. Analysts highlight mixed signals in earnings estimates and institutional activity as key factors influencing the stock’s recent performance. The Zacks Consensus projects $0.29 EPS for the current quarter, reflecting a 16% year-over-year increase, though the estimate has declined 3.3% over the past month. For fiscal 2025, the consensus stands at $1.27 per share, down 1% from prior forecasts, while 2026 projections of $1.31 represent a 3.2% decline from prior-year estimates.

Despite a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) rating, institutional investors have adjusted their positions. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake by 14.1%, while Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted holdings by 16.8% in the first half of 2025. However, insider sales, including transactions by CFO David Michels and VP Sital Mody, reduced ownership stakes by 20% and 2.59%, respectively, over recent months. These moves contrast with broader institutional confidence, as 62.52% of shares are held by institutional investors.

Analyst sentiment remains split, with 16 firms assigning an average "Moderate Buy" rating and a $31.13 price target. Notable upgrades include Barclays raising its target to $32 and Wells Fargo to $34. Yet, the stock’s Zacks Value Style Score of D indicates it trades at a premium relative to peers. Recent earnings met expectations, with Q2 revenue rising 13.2% year-over-year to $4.04 billion, though the EPS surprise remained flat at 0%.

The strategy of buying the top 500 stocks by daily trading volume and holding them for one day yielded a total profit of $2,340 from 2022 to the present. However, it experienced a maximum drawdown of -15.3% on October 27, 2022, underscoring the strategy’s volatility. This historical data aligns with KMI’s recent volatility, as the stock has swung between a 52-week low of $20.56 and a high of $31.48.