Fayez Sarofim & Co Boosts Stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Key Points

• Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its stake in Energy Transfer LP by 33.1% in the first quarter, owning a total of 245,013 shares valued at approximately $4.55 million.
• Energy Transfer declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, reflecting a yield of 7.6%, with a dividend payout ratio of 101.55%.
• Energy Transfer's stock experienced a decrease of 1.9%, closing at $17.28, and showed a significant decline in year-over-year revenue, down 7.2%.

Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its stake in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Free Report) by 33.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 245,013 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 60,957 shares during the quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co's holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $4,555,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 12.9% during the first quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 75,353,994 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,400,831,000 after purchasing an additional 8,613,645 shares during the period. Commerce Bank purchased a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter valued at about $92,607,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter valued at about $79,113,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth about $50,166,000. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 16,331,220 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $319,929,000 after acquiring an additional 2,512,060 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James Richard Perry sold 1,369 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.48, for a total transaction of $25,299.12. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at $453,185.04. This represents a 5.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Energy Transfer Stock Down 1.9%

Energy Transfer stock traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $17.28. The stock had a trading volume of 15,395,290 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,786,576. The company has a market cap of $59.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.40, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.83. The business's 50 day moving average price is $17.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.14. Energy Transfer LP has a 52 week low of $14.60 and a 52 week high of $21.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last posted 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 firm 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 11.07%. Energy Transfer's revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid 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 is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.6%. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ET. TD Cowen began coverage on Energy Transfer in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Energy Transfer from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.58.

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.