SageGuard Financial Group LLC Makes New $5.49 Million Investment in Energy Transfer LP $ET

Key Points

• SageGuard Financial Group LLC purchased a new position of 332,732 shares in Energy Transfer LP during Q4, valued at about $5.49 million.
• Energy Transfer reported Q earnings of $0.25 EPS (missing estimates of $0.34) while revenue rose 29.6% to $25.32 billion and beat expectations; the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.335 (annualized $1.34), a 7.1% yield despite a payout ratio above 100%.
• The stock trades near $18.92 with a market cap of $65.1 billion and a P/E of 15.64, and analysts carry an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $21.60.

SageGuard Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 332,732 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $5,487,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Energy Transfer by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 28,106 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 607 shares during the period. Howard Financial Services LTD. boosted its position in Energy Transfer by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 188,175 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $3,103,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 19,018 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 628 shares in the last quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 31,430 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $539,000 after buying an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 39,585 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $679,000 after buying an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company's stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 0.3%

NYSE ET opened at $18.92 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $18.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.60. Energy Transfer LP has a 12 month low of $15.80 and a 12 month high of $19.85. The company has a market capitalization of $65.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.64, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.62.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The pipeline company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.09). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 10.17% and a net margin of 5.11%.The business had revenue of $25.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 29.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a $0.335 dividend. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This is an increase from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer's payout ratio is presently 110.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ET has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Energy Transfer has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.60.

Energy Transfer Company Profile

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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