Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Stock Price Down 0.8%

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) traded down 0.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $15.78 and last traded at $15.78. 2,613,913 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 13,455,771 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.91.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ET shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Energy Transfer from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Mizuho increased 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Energy Transfer has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.29.

Energy Transfer Trading Down 0.2 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $53.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.66. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $16.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.01). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.85% and a return on equity of 12.22%. The firm had revenue of $20.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Energy Transfer's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Energy Transfer's dividend payout ratio is currently 117.43%.

Insider Activity at Energy Transfer

In related news, CEO Thomas E. Long purchased 20,000 shares of Energy Transfer stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $313,600.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 4,308,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,562,909.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Kelcy L. Warren bought 3,000,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.68 per share, for a total transaction of $47,040,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 123,385,650 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,934,686,992. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Thomas E. Long acquired 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $15.68 per share, with a total value of $313,600.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 4,308,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,562,909.12. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 3,040,000 shares of company stock worth $47,667,200. 3.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Berkley W R Corp increased its position in Energy Transfer by 11.6% during the first quarter. Berkley W R Corp now owns 5,334,494 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $83,912,000 after purchasing an additional 555,445 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 56,366 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $886,000 after acquiring an additional 2,326 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 95.8% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 145,894 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $2,013,000 after purchasing an additional 71,386 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in Energy Transfer by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 26,335 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 4,340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Energy Transfer by 491.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 1,290,364 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $20,297,000 after buying an additional 1,072,144 shares during the period. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.