Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Up 1.4% – Time to Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)’s share price traded up 1.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $17.84 and last traded at $17.83. 6,089,754 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 13,338,400 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.58.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Energy Transfer Stock Up 1.8 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $16.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $62.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 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 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $21.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.3225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.29 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.05%. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain purchased 20,000 shares of Energy Transfer stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 591,211 shares in the company, valued at $9,270,188.48. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 15.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 346,825 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $5,567,000 after acquiring an additional 45,172 shares during the period. Berkley W R Corp boosted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 11.6% during the first quarter. Berkley W R Corp now owns 5,334,494 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $83,912,000 after buying an additional 555,445 shares during the period. GFS Advisors LLC raised its position in Energy Transfer by 19,380.5% in the 3rd quarter. GFS Advisors LLC now owns 60,000 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $963,000 after buying an additional 59,692 shares during the last quarter. MAI Capital Management lifted its stake in Energy Transfer by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 698,113 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $11,205,000 after acquiring an additional 39,029 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Energy Transfer by 491.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 1,290,364 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $20,297,000 after acquiring an additional 1,072,144 shares during the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is currently 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.