Stephens Inc. AR Buys 274,753 Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Stephens Inc. AR grew its position in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Free Report) by 22.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,476,041 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 274,753 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR's holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $27,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC increased its position in Energy Transfer by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. Tidemark LLC now owns 2,188 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 811 shares during the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Energy Transfer

In other news, Director James Richard Perry sold 1,369 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.48, for a total value of $25,299.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,185.04. This represents a 5.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.28% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ET has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Mizuho upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Cowen started coverage on Energy Transfer in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on Energy Transfer in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Energy Transfer has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.58.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

Shares of ET stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $17.45. The company had a trading volume of 9,430,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,813,396. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $17.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.12. Energy Transfer LP has a one year low of $14.60 and a one year high of $21.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.79.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.03. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.47% and a net margin of 5.88%. The firm had revenue of $21.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a $0.3275 dividend. This represents a $1.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.51%. This is a boost from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio is presently 99.24%.

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.