Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) PT Raised to $23.00 at UBS Group

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) had its price objective hoisted by equities researchers at UBS Group from $22.00 to $23.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the pipeline company’s stock. UBS Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 42.28% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on ET. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.14.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

Shares of ET opened at $16.17 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.83, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.66. Energy Transfer has a 12 month low of $12.90 and a 12 month high of $16.50. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $20.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.01 billion. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.74% and a net margin of 5.19%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer will post 1.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Energy Transfer

In other news, CEO Thomas E. Long bought 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 4,308,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,562,909.12. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Kelcy L. Warren acquired 3,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $47,040,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 123,385,650 shares in the company, valued at $1,934,686,992. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Thomas E. Long bought 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,308,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,562,909.12. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 3,040,000 shares of company stock valued at $47,667,200 in the last ninety days. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ET. First Reserve GP XIII Ltd bought a new stake in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth $322,097,000. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 36,668,846 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $594,769,000 after buying an additional 4,141,715 shares during the last quarter. Natixis boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 20.0% in the first quarter. Natixis now owns 18,020,559 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $283,463,000 after buying an additional 2,999,300 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Energy Transfer by 117.3% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 3,867,998 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $53,378,000 after acquiring an additional 2,088,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crestline Management LP acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth about $27,600,000. Institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

About Energy Transfer

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.