Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Boosts Stock Position in Enbridge Inc (NYSE:ENB)

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System has increased its stake in Enbridge Inc by 3.9%, making it the fund's second largest position with 2,978,574 shares worth approximately $131.8 million.
• Enbridge reported $0.47 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates of $0.41, although its revenue of $7.14 billion fell short of the expected $10.56 billion.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.6839, representing a 5.8% dividend yield and reflecting a payout ratio of 133.99%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its holdings in Enbridge Inc (NYSE:ENB - Free Report) TSE: ENB by 3.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,978,574 shares of the pipeline company's stock after buying an additional 110,785 shares during the period. Enbridge accounts for approximately 3.1% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned approximately 0.14% of Enbridge worth $131,795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 79.9% during the 1st quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 25,206 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,116,000 after buying an additional 11,191 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 69,091 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $3,226,000 after buying an additional 629 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,147,968 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $272,063,000 after buying an additional 61,531 shares during the last quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich increased its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 31.5% during the 1st quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich now owns 11,625 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $515,000 after buying an additional 2,783 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 93,187,025 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $4,124,271,000 after buying an additional 1,569,879 shares during the last quarter. 54.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Enbridge Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE ENB traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $47.03. The company had a trading volume of 2,387,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,980,450. Enbridge Inc has a fifty-two week low of $38.44 and a fifty-two week high of $47.44. The company has a market capitalization of $102.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.17, a P/E/G ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The firm's 50 day moving average is $45.48 and its 200 day moving average is $44.63.

Enbridge (NYSE:ENB - Get Free Report) TSE: ENB last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.06. Enbridge had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 10.11%. The firm had revenue of $7.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Enbridge Inc will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Enbridge Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.6839 dividend. This represents a $2.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Enbridge's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Enbridge's dividend payout ratio is currently 133.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ENB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial upgraded Enbridge to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Enbridge from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Enbridge in a report on Monday, May 12th. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Enbridge in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, National Bankshares reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Enbridge in a report on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.00.

Enbridge Company Profile

Enbridge Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States.