Short Interest in Delek Logistics Partners, L.P. (NYSE:DKL) Decreases By 62.9%

Key Points

• Short interest plunged 62.9% to 133,129 shares as of August 31, equivalent to about 0.2% of DKL’s outstanding stock and one day of average trading volume.
• Delek Logistics raised its quarterly dividend to $1.135 per share, producing an annualized payout of $4.54 and an approximately 8.0% yield, though its payout ratio reached 158.19%.
• Analyst sentiment improved, with Zacks Research upgrading DKL to “strong buy” and Weiss Ratings to “buy”; the stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $55.40 average price target.

Delek Logistics Partners, L.P. (NYSE:DKL - Get Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 133,129 shares, a drop of 62.9% from the August 15th total of 358,771 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 135,287 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Approximately 0.2% of the company's stock are sold short.

Delek Logistics Partners Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of DKL stock traded up $0.05 on Friday, reaching $57.05. 249,841 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 144,437. The company has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88 and a beta of 0.44. The business's 50 day moving average price is $55.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 386.77. Delek Logistics Partners has a twelve month low of $42.35 and a twelve month high of $61.50.

Delek Logistics Partners (NYSE:DKL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.39). The business had revenue of $384.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $293.64 million. Delek Logistics Partners had a net margin of 12.85% and a negative return on equity of 935.80%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Delek Logistics Partners will post 3.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delek Logistics Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a dividend of $1.135 per share. This is a boost from Delek Logistics Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $4.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.0%. Delek Logistics Partners's dividend payout ratio is 158.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Delek Logistics Partners news, EVP Reuven Spiegel purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $50.00 per share, for a total transaction of $50,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 29,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,477,450. The trade was a 3.50% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Avigal Soreq acquired 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $50.00 per share, for a total transaction of $125,000.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 84,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,239,100. This trade represents a 3.04% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 15,000 shares of company stock valued at $750,000. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delek Logistics Partners

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Delek Logistics Partners by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,547 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Delek Logistics Partners by 2.2% during the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 13,724 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $707,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. American Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Delek Logistics Partners by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. American Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,000 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $759,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in Delek Logistics Partners by 303.3% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,210 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 910 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Delek Logistics Partners by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,537 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 11.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DKL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Delek Logistics Partners from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Delek Logistics Partners from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Delek Logistics Partners in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.40.

About Delek Logistics Partners

Delek Logistics Partners, LP NYSE: DKL is a publicly traded master limited partnership that owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure. The partnership was formed in 2012 and is sponsored by Delek US Holdings, Inc, an independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products.

Delek Logistics provides transportation, storage, gathering, terminalling, wholesale marketing and other logistics services for crude oil, refined products and certain intermediate products. Its assets include crude oil gathering systems, pipelines, storage facilities, terminals and truck-transportation operations.

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