Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading 2.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)’s stock price shot up 2.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $17.43 and last traded at $17.26. 8,538,183 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 35% from the average session volume of 13,039,397 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.90.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on ET shares. UBS Group upped 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Energy Transfer in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $20.00 target price on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.00.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $59.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $16.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.01). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.74% and a net margin of 5.19%. The business had revenue of $20.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.3225 dividend. This represents a $1.29 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is 107.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Energy Transfer

In other news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain purchased 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 591,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,270,188.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Energy Transfer news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain purchased 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired 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 directly owns 591,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,270,188.48. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Kelcy L. Warren acquired 3,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $47,040,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 123,385,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,934,686,992. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 3,040,000 shares of company stock worth $47,667,200 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ET. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 62.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 483,822 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $7,765,000 after acquiring an additional 185,805 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Energy Transfer by 15.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 346,825 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $5,567,000 after purchasing an additional 45,172 shares in the last quarter. Black Swift Group LLC raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 88.3% in the third quarter. Black Swift Group LLC now owns 35,714 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $573,000 after purchasing an additional 16,750 shares during the period. Schulhoff & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 28.1% during the third quarter. Schulhoff & Co. Inc. now owns 25,000 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 5,478 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Curi RMB Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 44,930 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $721,000 after buying an additional 3,608 shares during the period. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.