Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading 1.6% Higher – What’s Next?

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) rose 1.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $16.72 and last traded at $16.6850. Approximately 7,105,008 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 14,985,130 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.43.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on ET. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Energy Transfer from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 price objective (up from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.92.

Energy Transfer Trading Up 1.6%

The stock has a market cap of $57.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $16.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $19.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.84 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The business’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $0.3325 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $1.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.0%. This is a boost from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kelcy L. Warren bought 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $16.95 per share, for a total transaction of $16,950,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 104,577,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,772,593,760.85. The trade was a 0.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 3.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ET. Chelsea Counsel Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 370.3% in the 2nd quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 94,050 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,705,000 after acquiring an additional 74,050 shares during the last quarter. Ariston Services Group grew its holdings in Energy Transfer by 126.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ariston Services Group now owns 100,683 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 56,274 shares during the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 2nd quarter worth about $930,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in Energy Transfer by 11.9% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 275,698 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $5,125,000 after purchasing an additional 29,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Energy Transfer by 223.5% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,069,534 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $19,883,000 after purchasing an additional 738,885 shares during the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer LP provides energy-related services. The company owns and operates natural gas transportation pipeline, and natural gas storage facilities in Texas and Oklahoma; and approximately 20,090 miles of interstate natural gas pipeline. It also sells natural gas to electric utilities, independent power plants, local distribution and other marketing companies, and industrial end-users.