Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.55.

Several equities research analysts have commented on ET shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Energy Transfer

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ET. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 65.0% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 2,138.5% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,746 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,668 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 43.6% during the third quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,472 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Energy Transfer by 44.8% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,357 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the period. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ET opened at $19.04 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $17.80 and its 200 day moving average is $16.65. Energy Transfer has a 12-month low of $13.60 and a 12-month high of $20.02. The stock has a market cap of $65.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.32. The firm had revenue of $20.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.59 billion. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 5.90%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Energy Transfer will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.3225 dividend. This represents a $1.29 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.85%.

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.