Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Enbridge (NYSE:ENB)

Enbridge Inc. (NYSE:ENB) (TSE:ENB) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 20,216 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,036% compared to the average daily volume of 1,779 put options.

Enbridge Stock Performance

ENB stock traded down $0.19 during trading on Thursday, reaching $36.80. The company had a trading volume of 3,204,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,921,383. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.22. The company has a market cap of $78.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.87. Enbridge has a twelve month low of $31.03 and a twelve month high of $38.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Enbridge Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.677 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This is a boost from Enbridge’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Enbridge’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 138.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Enbridge in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Enbridge in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.20.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in Enbridge by 2.1% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 215,629 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $7,800,000 after acquiring an additional 4,400 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,003,828 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $434,300,000 after buying an additional 529,913 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of Enbridge by 1.3% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 917,918 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $33,210,000 after purchasing an additional 11,617 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Enbridge in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $357,000. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Enbridge by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 36,649,579 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,325,982,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360,439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.60% of the company’s stock.

About Enbridge

Enbridge Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States.