Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $22.75.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Tuesday.

Energy Transfer Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Energy Transfer stock opened at $20.37 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $19.17 and its 200 day moving average is $17.93. Energy Transfer has a 1 year low of $16.18 and a 1 year high of $20.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.11 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.05). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 9.77%. The firm had revenue of $27.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.78 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.36 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 32.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a $0.3375 dividend. This represents a $1.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is currently 112.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lee Financial Co raised its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 359.7% during the 3rd quarter. Lee Financial Co now owns 193,817 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,326,000 after buying an additional 151,657 shares during the period. Eagle Global Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC now owns 6,466,059 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $110,958,000 after buying an additional 363,623 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp. grew its holdings in Energy Transfer by 100.1% during the 4th quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 161,523 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,664,000 after acquiring an additional 80,786 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 2,927,436 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $50,235,000 after purchasing an additional 144,037 shares during the period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 150.2% during the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 105,003 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,802,000 after buying an additional 63,043 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.