Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.55.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ET shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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 reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ET. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Energy Transfer by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 38,634,018 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $756,840,000 after buying an additional 5,254,721 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 23,987,750 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $469,920,000 after acquiring an additional 1,723,683 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,776,221 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $387,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,381 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 16,331,220 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $319,929,000 after purchasing an additional 2,512,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chickasaw Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Energy Transfer by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 15,738,594 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $308,319,000 after purchasing an additional 388,073 shares in the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Energy Transfer Price Performance

Energy Transfer stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $18.44. 12,508,518 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,136,773. Energy Transfer has a 12-month low of $14.90 and a 12-month high of $21.45. The company has a market cap of $63.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.72. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The pipeline company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 5.74%. Equities analysts forecast that Energy Transfer will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This is an increase from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.05%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.56%.

Energy Transfer Company Profile

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.