Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Shares Up 1.3%

Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) traded up 1.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $16.15 and last traded at $16.13. 2,896,437 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 13,413,811 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.92.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ET has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.29.

Energy Transfer Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a market cap of $54.04 billion, a PE ratio of 14.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.66. The stock's 50 day moving average is $16.11 and its 200-day moving average is $15.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $20.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.01 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.19% and a return on equity of 12.74%. Energy Transfer's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 117.43%.

Insider Transactions at Energy Transfer

In related news, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain purchased 20,000 shares of Energy Transfer stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now directly owns 591,211 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,270,188.48. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Kelcy L. Warren purchased 3,000,000 shares of Energy Transfer stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $47,040,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 123,385,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,934,686,992. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gregory G. Mcilwain bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 591,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,270,188.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders bought 3,040,000 shares of company stock worth $47,667,200. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company's stock.

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.