ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) Position Boosted by Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE - Free Report) by 255.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,211 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 153,974 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.'s holdings in ONEOK were worth $15,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in ONEOK by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,237,038 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,757,405,000 after purchasing an additional 5,525,010 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in ONEOK by 37.7% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 13,292,341 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $843,133,000 after buying an additional 3,636,660 shares during the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. raised its position in ONEOK by 3,478.3% during the third quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 3,578,316 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $226,973,000 after acquiring an additional 3,478,316 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in ONEOK by 65.9% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,132,301 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $515,832,000 after acquiring an additional 3,229,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of ONEOK by 5,247.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,463,929 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $173,017,000 after purchasing an additional 2,417,849 shares during the last quarter. 69.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ONEOK Stock Performance

OKE stock traded up $0.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $77.24. 2,235,452 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,996,050. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $45.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 1.64. ONEOK, Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.91 and a twelve month high of $81.81.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $4.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. ONEOK had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 12.54%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ONEOK, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

ONEOK announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the utilities provider to repurchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

ONEOK Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.13%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. ONEOK's dividend payout ratio is 92.09%.

Insider Transactions at ONEOK

In other ONEOK news, Director Wayne Thomas Smith bought 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $75.25 per share, with a total value of $203,175.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,175. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on OKE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. US Capital Advisors downgraded ONEOK from an "overweight" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Wolfe Research raised ONEOK from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of ONEOK from $71.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.58.

ONEOK Profile

ONEOK, Inc engages in gathering, processing, fractionation, storage, transportation, and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. It operates through four segments: Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, Natural Gas Pipelines, and Refined Products and Crude.

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