Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD) Shares Purchased by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 2.8%, now holding 1,231,633 shares valued at approximately $42 million.
• Enterprise Products Partners announced a quarterly dividend of $0.545, increasing its annualized yield to 7.0%, with a payout ratio of 81.04%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for the stock, with an average consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $36.25.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,231,633 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 33,696 shares during the quarter. Enterprise Products Partners accounts for about 1.0% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned about 0.06% of Enterprise Products Partners worth $42,048,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EPD. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 44.9% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,014 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC raised its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 3.5% during the first quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 9,985 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the period. Full Sail Capital LLC raised its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 9,081 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the period. Keystone Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 2.6% during the first quarter. Keystone Wealth Services LLC now owns 13,937 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Finally, Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 4.5% during the first quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC now owns 8,207 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William C. Montgomery bought 16,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $31.55 per share, with a total value of $504,800.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 136,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,319,826. The trade was a 13.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John R. Rutherford bought 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $31.35 per share, with a total value of $470,250.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 158,586 shares in the company, valued at $4,971,671.10. This represents a 10.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 32.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EPD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho set a $38.00 target price on shares of Enterprise Products Partners and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Enterprise Products Partners from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Enterprise Products Partners in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "hold" rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.25.

Enterprise Products Partners Trading Up 0.9%

EPD traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $31.46. 5,434,247 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,556,419. The firm's fifty day moving average is $31.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.95. Enterprise Products Partners L.P. has a 1-year low of $27.77 and a 1-year high of $34.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $68.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.66.

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.01). Enterprise Products Partners had a return on equity of 19.88% and a net margin of 10.71%. The firm had revenue of $11.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. Enterprise Products Partners's revenue was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Enterprise Products Partners L.P. will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Products Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Enterprise Products Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. Enterprise Products Partners's dividend payout ratio is currently 81.04%.

About Enterprise Products Partners

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. provides midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, petrochemicals, and refined products. It operates in four segments: NGL Pipelines & Services, Crude Oil Pipelines & Services, Natural Gas Pipelines & Services, and Petrochemical & Refined Products Services.