Donaldson Capital Management LLC Trims Position in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,215 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,539 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings in ONEOK were worth $1,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in ONEOK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. First Command Bank boosted its holdings in shares of ONEOK by 401.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Command Bank now owns 491 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ONEOK by 97.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 437 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ONEOK by 90.7% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of ONEOK in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on OKE shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of ONEOK from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of ONEOK from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of ONEOK from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of ONEOK from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, US Capital Advisors cut shares of ONEOK from an “overweight” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ONEOK currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $82.25.

ONEOK Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:OKE traded down $0.62 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $77.23. 345,386 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,003,434. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $45.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $75.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.72. ONEOK, Inc. has a 52-week low of $55.91 and a 52-week high of $80.81.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.21 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.57 billion. ONEOK had a net margin of 15.04% and a return on equity of 22.57%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that ONEOK, Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

ONEOK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.13%. This is a positive change from ONEOK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.96. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 29th. ONEOK’s payout ratio is 71.35%.

ONEOK announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the utilities provider to buy up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Wayne Thomas Smith purchased 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $75.25 per share, with a total value of $203,175.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,700 shares in the company, valued at $203,175. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

ONEOK Company 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.