Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Lowers Stock Position in Energy Transfer LP $ET

Key Points

• Ameritas Advisory Services LLC reduced its stake in Energy Transfer LP by 48.9%, ending the quarter with 38,172 shares valued at approximately $692,000.
• Energy Transfer reported $0.32 EPS for the last quarter, matching the consensus estimate, but its revenue of $19.24 billion fell short of expectations.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, representing an annualized yield of 7.8%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 102.33%.

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lessened its stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Free Report) by 48.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,172 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 36,523 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ET. Ryan Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company's stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

NYSE:ET opened at $16.83 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $17.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.53. The stock has a market cap of $57.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.78. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $14.60 and a twelve month high of $21.45.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.32. The business had revenue of $19.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.07 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.35 EPS. As a group, research 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, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.8%. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ET has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $23.00 target price (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $23.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Energy Transfer in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kelcy L. Warren bought 1,350,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.36 per share, for a total transaction of $23,436,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 69,178,477 shares in the company, valued at $1,200,938,360.72. This trade represents a 1.99% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.28% of the company's stock.

Energy Transfer 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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