Sterling Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 337,231 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 22,056 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of ONEOK worth $33,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in OKE. Heritage Trust Co acquired a new stake in ONEOK in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,288,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ONEOK by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,870 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $768,000 after buying an additional 2,129 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co raised its holdings in ONEOK by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 12,751 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,280,000 after acquiring an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its stake in ONEOK by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 256,639 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,767,000 after acquiring an additional 1,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in ONEOK by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,713 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.13% of the company's stock.

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ONEOK Stock Performance

OKE traded up $0.97 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,130,558 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,152,494. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.81, a PEG ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 1.20. The company's 50-day moving average price is $94.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.81. ONEOK, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.48 and a twelve month high of $118.07.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.11. ONEOK had a net margin of 14.05% and a return on equity of 16.84%. The firm had revenue of $7 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.18 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.84%. This is an increase from ONEOK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.99. ONEOK's payout ratio is currently 79.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on shares of ONEOK in a research report on Friday, February 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research raised ONEOK from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $110.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on ONEOK from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on ONEOK from $111.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of ONEOK from $109.00 to $102.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $105.00.

ONEOK Profile

ONEOK, Inc engages in gathering, processing, fractionation, storage, transportation, and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. It operates through four segments: Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, Natural Gas Pipelines, and Refined Products and Crude.