Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $60.86 and last traded at $60.42, with a volume of 477511 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $59.51.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on SUN. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Sunoco from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial upgraded Sunoco from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sunoco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Sunoco and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $63.00 target price on shares of Sunoco in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $65.83.

Sunoco Stock Up 0.9%

The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.14 and a 200-day moving average of $53.56. The company has a current ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33. The company has a market capitalization of $12.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.58 and a beta of 0.51.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($1.55). Sunoco had a net margin of 2.01% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The firm had revenue of $8.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. Sunoco’s revenue was up 63.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Sunoco LP will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sunoco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.9317 per share. This is a positive change from Sunoco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $3.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.0%. Sunoco’s payout ratio is presently 163.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SUN. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Sunoco during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sunoco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sunoco by 496.5% during the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 853 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. Cresta Advisors Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sunoco during the 4th quarter worth $64,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sunoco by 41.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,360 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.29% of the company’s stock.

About Sunoco

Sunoco LP (NYSE: SUN) is an independent master limited partnership that specializes in the distribution and marketing of transportation fuels and related products. The company operates through two primary segments: wholesale fuel distribution and retail marketing. In wholesale distribution, Sunoco supplies branded fuels to distributors, commercial customers and resellers across the United States. Its retail marketing arm operates a network of company?owned and franchised Sunoco branded service stations and convenience stores, providing gasoline, diesel, ethanol blends and lubricants to consumers.

Sunoco’s product portfolio extends beyond traditional fuels to include biofuels, specialty chemicals and on?road diesel treated to meet ultra?low sulfur requirements.