Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Buy" by the six brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $63.83.

SUN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on Sunoco from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Sunoco from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd.

Sunoco Stock Up 2.8 %

SUN stock traded up $1.61 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $58.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 373,867 shares, compared to its average volume of 507,914. The company's fifty day moving average price is $56.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.67. Sunoco has a twelve month low of $48.00 and a twelve month high of $59.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.84 and a beta of 1.06.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.73). Sunoco had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 22.52%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sunoco will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Sunoco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.8865 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This is a boost from Sunoco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.08%. Sunoco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.64%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sunoco

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SUN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Sunoco by 26.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,191,570 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $117,644,000 after acquiring an additional 455,361 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Sunoco by 908,833.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 436,288 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $23,419,000 after purchasing an additional 436,240 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV lifted its position in Sunoco by 223.7% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 513,715 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $26,426,000 after purchasing an additional 355,000 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Sunoco during the fourth quarter worth about $17,739,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in Sunoco by 32,166.5% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 231,351 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $12,137,000 after buying an additional 230,634 shares during the period. 24.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Sunoco

Sunoco LP, together with its subsidiaries, distributes and retails motor fuels in the United States. It operates through two segments: Fuel Distribution and Marketing, and All Other. The Fuel Distribution and Marketing segment purchases motor fuel, as well as other petroleum products, such as propane and lubricating oil from independent refiners and oil companies and supplies it to company-operated retail stores, independently operated commission agents, and retail stores, as well as other commercial customers, including unbranded retail stores, other fuel distributors, school districts, municipalities, and other industrial customers.