Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading 1.3% Higher - What's Next?

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) traded up 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $20.32 and last traded at $20.19. 4,596,221 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 13,178,051 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.93.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ET has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. Bank of America initiated coverage on Energy Transfer in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their price target on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $20.82.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $18.85 and a 200-day moving average of $17.12. The company has a market cap of $68.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.74, a PEG ratio of 0.62 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32. The firm had revenue of $20.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.59 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.3225 dividend. This represents a $1.29 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Energy Transfer's payout ratio is 94.85%.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ET. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 44.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,379,297 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $535,738,000 after purchasing an additional 10,195,768 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Energy Transfer by 1,491.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,175,731 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $67,020,000 after buying an additional 3,913,266 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Energy Transfer by 36.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,563,478 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $185,594,000 after buying an additional 3,106,631 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in Energy Transfer by 45.9% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 9,581,762 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $153,787,000 after acquiring an additional 3,013,973 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 1,837.4% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,338,885 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $21,489,000 after acquiring an additional 1,269,778 shares during the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.