Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Up 0.3% - Here's Why

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) shares shot up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $17.83 and last traded at $17.82. 1,972,377 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 16,953,686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ET shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target 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. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Energy Transfer presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.64.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 0.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $17.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.58.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.36 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $22.28 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.74% and a return on equity of 11.56%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.3275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.34%. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio is currently 99.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter worth about $237,000. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,603 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 834 shares during the period. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 28.5% during the 4th quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 67,586 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,324,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Enclave Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Enclave Advisors LLC now owns 293,324 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $5,746,000 after purchasing an additional 4,903 shares during the period. Finally, XML Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 46,033 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $902,000 after acquiring an additional 8,386 shares during the period. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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