Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Up 1.6% – Still a Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) shares were up 1.6% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $19.12 and last traded at $18.9610. Approximately 17,555,891 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 11% from the average daily volume of 15,853,751 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.66.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ET shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $22.00 target price (down from $25.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Energy Transfer presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.60.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 1.6%

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $18.28 and a 200-day moving average of $17.32. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $65.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.63.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The pipeline company reported $0.25 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $25.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.29 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 29.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ET. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 60.0% during the 4th quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Navalign LLC bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

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.