Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading 0.3% Higher – Still a Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) rose 0.3% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $17.39 and last traded at $17.36. Approximately 4,987,174 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 13,234,689 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.30.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on ET. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Energy Transfer presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $20.00.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The business has a 50 day moving average of $16.35 and a 200 day moving average of $16.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.66.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.32. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The company had revenue of $20.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.34 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.3225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.29 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.55%. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is 94.85%.

Insider Activity

In other Energy Transfer news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain bought 20,000 shares of Energy Transfer stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 591,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,270,188.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ET. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 65.0% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Energy Transfer by 2,138.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,746 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,668 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 43.6% in the third quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,472 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.