First Manhattan CO. LLC. Trims Holdings in Enbridge Inc $ENB

Key Points

• First Manhattan CO. LLC. reduced its stake in Enbridge Inc by 6.2%, holding now 842,067 shares valued at approximately $37.27 million.
• Enbridge recently reported a quarterly dividend increase to $0.6839, providing an annual yield of 5.7%, with a payout ratio of 134.98%.
• A variety of analysts have revised their ratings on Enbridge, with Jefferies Financial Group upgrading it to a "buy" and several other firms issuing target prices ranging from $54.00 to $67.00.

First Manhattan CO. LLC. decreased its position in shares of Enbridge Inc (NYSE:ENB - Free Report) TSE: ENB by 6.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 842,067 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 56,012 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC.'s holdings in Enbridge were worth $37,268,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ENB. Capital Investment Counsel Inc grew its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 3.1% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc now owns 7,527 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 0.7% in the first quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 34,326 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,526,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Loudon Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Enbridge by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Loudon Investment Management LLC now owns 21,201 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $939,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in Enbridge by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 5,304 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $235,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hardin Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Enbridge by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Hardin Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,553 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ENB. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Enbridge from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Enbridge in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Enbridge from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Enbridge from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Enbridge from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.50.

Enbridge Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:ENB traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $48.29. 2,667,837 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,701,650. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.79, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Enbridge Inc has a 12-month low of $39.73 and a 12-month high of $48.59. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $46.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.12.

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

Enbridge Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $0.6839 dividend. This is a positive change from Enbridge's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. Enbridge's payout ratio is currently 134.98%.

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.