ING Groep NV Reduces Holdings in Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV has reduced its stake in Sunoco LP by 46.3%, owning 276,000 shares after selling 237,715 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Sunoco declared a quarterly dividend of $0.9088 per share, marking an increase from the previous $0.90 dividend, resulting in an annualized yield of 6.7%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Sunoco, with a price target of $64.75 after some brokerages upgraded their target prices recently.

ING Groep NV lessened its position in shares of Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN - Free Report) by 46.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 276,000 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 237,715 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV owned about 0.18% of Sunoco worth $16,025,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SUN. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Sunoco in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Sunoco in the fourth quarter worth about $90,000. Huntington National Bank increased its stake in Sunoco by 440.3% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,783 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Sunoco during the 4th quarter valued at about $102,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Sunoco by 17.1% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,865 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $166,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SUN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Sunoco from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Sunoco from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.75.

Sunoco Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE SUN traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $52.12. 673,721 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 432,437. Sunoco LP has a 52 week low of $48.00 and a 52 week high of $59.88. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $53.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.59. The company has a market cap of $7.96 billion, a PE ratio of 25.68 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.68 by ($1.35). The company had revenue of $5.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.42 billion. Sunoco had a net margin of 2.02% and a return on equity of 10.55%. Sunoco's revenue for the quarter was down 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sunoco LP will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Sunoco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.9088 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This is a positive change from Sunoco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. Sunoco's dividend payout ratio is currently 178.82%.

Sunoco Company Profile

Sunoco LP, together with its subsidiaries, distributes and retails motor fuels in the United States. It operates through two segments: Fuel Distribution and Marketing, and All Other. The Fuel Distribution and Marketing segment purchases motor fuel, as well as other petroleum products, such as propane and lubricating oil from independent refiners and oil companies and supplies it to company-operated retail stores, independently operated commission agents, and retail stores, as well as other commercial customers, including unbranded retail stores, other fuel distributors, school districts, municipalities, and other industrial customers.