Sage Investment Counsel LLC Invests $1.19 Million in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE:BIP)

Sage Investment Counsel LLC bought a new position in shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE:BIP) (TSE:BIP.UN) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 37,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,192,000. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners accounts for approximately 1.6% of Sage Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new position in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in the third quarter valued at approximately $77,000. 57.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of BIP stock opened at $31.68 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $32.39 and a 200-day moving average of $33.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. has a 12-month low of $24.84 and a 12-month high of $36.50. The company has a market capitalization of $14.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 792.20 and a beta of 1.08.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE:BIP) (TSE:BIP.UN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.58. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners had a net margin of 1.64% and a return on equity of 1.17%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is an increase from Brookfield Infrastructure Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.43%. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4,300.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 1st. Finally, TD Securities increased their target price on shares of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.50.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners Company Profile

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. owns and operates utilities, transport, midstream, and data businesses in North and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company's Utilities segment operates approximately 2,900 km of electricity transmission lines; 4,200 km of natural gas pipelines; 8.1 million electricity and natural gas connections; and 0.6 million long-term contracted sub-metering services.