Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Shares Down 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) fell 1.3% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $19.11 and last traded at $19.1590. 9,939,460 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 15,720,715 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ET. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 target price (up from $22.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 target price (up from $22.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.45.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.15. The stock has a market cap of $65.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.05). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 9.77%. The firm had revenue of $27.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.36 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $0.3375 dividend. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 112.50%.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 60.0% in the fourth quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors bought a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Energy Transfer during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

About Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET) is a Dallas-based midstream energy company that develops and operates infrastructure for the transportation, storage and processing of hydrocarbons. The company’s operations focus on moving and storing natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil and refined products through an integrated network of pipelines, terminals, storage facilities and processing plants. Energy Transfer provides core midstream services such as gathering, compression, fractionation, processing, and bulk transportation to support production and downstream supply chains.

Its asset base spans an extensive network across the United States, connecting producing regions, processing centers, petrochemical hubs and coastal and inland markets.