Griffin Asset Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,213 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 865 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $1,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fortis Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fortis Capital Management LLC now owns 31,322 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 6,510 shares during the period. Busey Bank grew its stake in Energy Transfer by 15.1% in the 2nd quarter. Busey Bank now owns 14,506 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 1,906 shares during the last quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 2nd quarter valued at about $252,000. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC grew its stake in Energy Transfer by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 344,906 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $5,594,000 after acquiring an additional 6,858 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Energy Transfer by 38.7% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC now owns 44,126 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $716,000 after acquiring an additional 12,313 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

Energy Transfer stock traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $15.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,202,204 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,584,119. The firm has a market cap of $53.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $16.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $12.89 and a twelve month high of $16.50.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $20.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.01 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.85% and a return on equity of 12.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.02%. This is a boost from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 117.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Energy Transfer

In related news, Director Kelcy L. Warren bought 3,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $47,040,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 123,385,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,934,686,992. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Energy Transfer news, CEO Thomas E. Long purchased 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,308,859 shares in the company, valued at $67,562,909.12. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kelcy L. Warren purchased 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $47,040,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 123,385,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,934,686,992. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ET shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.29.

Energy Transfer Profile

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.