Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.25.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Sunoco from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Sunoco from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays reduced their target price on Sunoco from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Sunoco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th.

Institutional Trading of Sunoco

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. lifted its position in Sunoco by 26,345.6% in the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 1,351,368 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $76,406,000 after buying an additional 1,346,258 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sunoco by 176.6% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 700,229 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $39,591,000 after acquiring an additional 447,072 shares in the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY boosted its position in Sunoco by 33.4% during the second quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 583,323 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $32,981,000 after purchasing an additional 146,152 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Sunoco by 5,437.3% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 572,779 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $30,747,000 after purchasing an additional 562,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adams Asset Advisors LLC increased its position in Sunoco by 82.3% in the 2nd quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC now owns 571,538 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $32,315,000 after purchasing an additional 258,103 shares during the last quarter. 24.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sunoco Stock Down 1.4 %

SUN opened at $50.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a PE ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $53.03 and its 200-day moving average is $53.87. Sunoco has a one year low of $49.45 and a one year high of $64.89.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas company reported $3.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $2.62. The firm had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.63 billion. Sunoco had a net margin of 3.80% and a return on equity of 41.76%. Sunoco’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Sunoco will post 8.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sunoco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.8756 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.88%. Sunoco’s dividend payout ratio is 46.30%.

About Sunoco

Sunoco LP, together with its subsidiaries, distributes and retails motor fuels in the United States. It operates through two segments: Fuel Distribution and Marketing, and All Other. The Fuel Distribution and Marketing segment purchases motor fuel, as well as other petroleum products, such as propane and lubricating oil from independent refiners and oil companies and supplies it to company-operated retail stores, independently operated commission agents, and retail stores, as well as other commercial customers, including unbranded retail stores, other fuel distributors, school districts, municipalities, and other industrial customers.