Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Shares Down 1.3% – Time to Sell?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)’s share price fell 1.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $19.77 and last traded at $19.87. 3,668,363 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 16,517,305 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ET. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.18.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $68.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.53, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The pipeline company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.66% and a net margin of 5.74%. Sell-side analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.325 dividend. This is a boost from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ET. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its position in Energy Transfer by 65.0% in the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 2,138.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,746 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Company 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.