Morgan Stanley Lowers Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD) Price Target to $33.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has lowered the price target for Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) from $35.00 to $33.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating on the stock.
• Enterprise Products Partners' stock has seen a slight decline of 0.6%, trading at $31.49, with analysts looking ahead to a projected earnings per share of 2.9 for the fiscal year.
• Insider transactions include purchases by directors totaling over $975,000 and indicate increased confidence in the company's stock among its executives.

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $35.00 to $33.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the oil and gas producer's stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective suggests a potential upside of 4.81% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on EPD. Argus raised shares of Enterprise Products Partners to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Enterprise Products Partners in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Enterprise Products Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $35.83.

Enterprise Products Partners Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Enterprise Products Partners stock traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $31.49. 784,946 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,697,575. The company has a market cap of $68.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.66. Enterprise Products Partners has a twelve month low of $27.77 and a twelve month high of $34.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.01). Enterprise Products Partners had a return on equity of 19.81% and a net margin of 10.71%.The firm had revenue of $11.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Enterprise Products Partners's revenue for the quarter was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Enterprise Products Partners will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Enterprise Products Partners

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in shares of Enterprise Products Partners during the first quarter worth about $71,052,000. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Enterprise Products Partners by 5.0% in the first quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 41,326,613 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,410,891,000 after purchasing an additional 1,967,188 shares during the last quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Enterprise Products Partners by 14.3% during the second quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 14,624,238 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $453,498,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834,659 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Enterprise Products Partners by 65.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,347,247 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $148,415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,717,768 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northside Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Enterprise Products Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at $47,628,000. 26.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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