Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Shares Down 1.5% - Time to Sell?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) dropped 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $17.68 and last traded at $17.70. Approximately 4,555,460 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 15,762,390 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ET has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Monday, March 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.58.

Energy Transfer Trading Down 1.2%

The business's fifty day moving average is $17.66 and its 200-day moving average is $18.47. The firm has a market cap of $60.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $21.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.28 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.88% and a return on equity of 11.47%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.32 EPS. Analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.3275 per share. This represents a $1.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This is an increase from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio is currently 99.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Energy Transfer news, Director James Richard Perry sold 1,369 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.48, for a total transaction of $25,299.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 24,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $453,185.04. This represents a 5.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.28% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 12,090.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 12,455,613 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $244,005,000 after buying an additional 12,353,441 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 75,353,994 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,400,831,000 after buying an additional 8,613,645 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 38,634,018 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $756,840,000 after buying an additional 5,254,721 shares during the period. Commerce Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter worth approximately $92,607,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,113,000. 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.