Weiss Asset Management LP Makes New Investment in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 327,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $29,890,000. ONEOK comprises about 0.7% of Weiss Asset Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. HM Payson & Co. increased its stake in ONEOK by 6.3% during the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 1,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of ONEOK by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 7,132 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $650,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co raised its holdings in ONEOK by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 10,067 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in ONEOK by 2.2% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $454,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in ONEOK by 0.9% during the second quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 13,623 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,111,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.13% of the company’s stock.

ONEOK Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:OKE opened at $110.12 on Friday. ONEOK, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.49 and a fifty-two week high of $118.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $102.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The stock has a market cap of $64.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 1.69.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.81 billion. ONEOK had a net margin of 14.05% and a return on equity of 16.84%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on OKE. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of ONEOK from $85.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America started coverage on ONEOK in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on ONEOK from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on ONEOK from $88.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised ONEOK from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $103.00 to $111.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.00.

About ONEOK

ONEOK, Inc engages in gathering, processing, fractionation, storage, transportation, and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. It operates through four segments: Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, Natural Gas Pipelines, and Refined Products and Crude.