Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading 0.2% Higher – Time to Buy?

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) were up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $17.13 and last traded at $17.08. 2,888,980 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 13,244,215 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.05.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Energy Transfer Stock Up 0.1 %

The stock 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 $58.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.32. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 5.90%. The firm had revenue of $20.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.3225 per share. This represents a $1.29 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is currently 94.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 591,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,270,188.48. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. lifted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 36,668,846 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $594,769,000 after purchasing an additional 4,141,715 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 44.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,379,297 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $535,738,000 after purchasing an additional 10,195,768 shares in the last quarter. Natixis boosted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 20.0% in the first quarter. Natixis now owns 18,020,559 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $283,463,000 after buying an additional 2,999,300 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in Energy Transfer by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 16,107,470 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $261,263,000 after acquiring an additional 171,720 shares during the period. Finally, Chickasaw Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 15,350,521 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $246,376,000 after purchasing an additional 466,565 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

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.