Energy Transfer LP $ET Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors reduced its Energy Transfer stake by 2.3%, selling 64,446 shares and retaining 2.75 million shares valued at approximately $52.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 38.22% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable: Energy Transfer has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $23.92, above its reported share price of $21.02.
• Strong quarterly results and income appeal support the stock. Energy Transfer beat earnings and revenue estimates, while its $0.34 quarterly dividend implies a 6.5% annualized yield; a company director also purchased roughly $250,000 of shares.

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,753,786 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 64,446 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Energy Transfer worth $52,652,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ET. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Energy Transfer by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,866 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $208,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH raised its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 219,232 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $4,231,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares in the last quarter. Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,007 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $216,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Marks Wealth LLC increased its stake in Energy Transfer by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Marks Wealth LLC now owns 12,560 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cascade Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC now owns 72,645 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,389,000 after buying an additional 560 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on ET shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Energy Transfer from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Energy Transfer

In other news, Director James Richard Perry acquired 12,359 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $20.23 per share, for a total transaction of $250,022.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 208,046 shares in the company, valued at $4,208,770.58. This trade represents a 6.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.28% of the company's stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

Shares of ET stock opened at $21.02 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $19.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.32. Energy Transfer LP has a fifty-two week low of $16.18 and a fifty-two week high of $21.11. The firm has a market cap of $72.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $34.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.71 billion. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 4.87%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 78.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. Analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is an increase from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.52%.

Key Headlines Impacting Energy Transfer

Here are the key news stories impacting Energy Transfer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Income appeal remains a key support. An investor analysis argues that Energy Transfer’s distribution yield, now near 6.5%, remains attractive and that the payout appears dependable, reinforcing ET’s appeal as a high-income midstream investment. Energy Transfer’s Yield Just Climbed Near 6.5%. Here’s Why I’m Not Worried About the Payout.
• Positive Sentiment: AI-related power demand could create growth opportunities. Alpha Wealth Funds highlighted ET’s positioning to benefit from the expected surge in electricity consumption from artificial-intelligence infrastructure, potentially increasing demand for natural gas and related energy services. Energy Transfer Positions to Capitalize on the AI Power Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and insider signals are favorable. Truist Financial forecast strong potential price appreciation, while separate coverage said ET shares benefited from insider buying activity. These signals may strengthen investor confidence, although they do not guarantee future performance. Truist Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Energy Transfer Stock Energy Transfer Stock Price Up on Insider Buying Activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Natural-gas prices moved higher. Warmer-weather forecasts helped lift natural-gas prices, which could improve industry sentiment. However, ET’s diversified, largely fee-based midstream model may limit the direct effect of commodity-price changes. Nat-Gas Prices Close Higher on Warm Forecasts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks downgraded ET from “strong buy” to “hold.” The rating change is a modest headwind and may encourage some investors to take profits after the stock’s recent momentum. Zacks.com

About Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer NYSE: ET is a Dallas-based midstream energy company that develops and operates infrastructure for the transportation, storage and processing of hydrocarbons. The company's operations focus on moving and storing natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil and refined products through an integrated network of pipelines, terminals, storage facilities and processing plants. Energy Transfer provides core midstream services such as gathering, compression, fractionation, processing, and bulk transportation to support production and downstream supply chains.

Its asset base spans an extensive network across the United States, connecting producing regions, processing centers, petrochemical hubs and coastal and inland markets.

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