Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Up 2.4% – Still a Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) shares rose 2.4% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $20.63 and last traded at $20.62. Approximately 11,680,893 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 14% from the average daily volume of 13,569,888 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Energy Transfer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Energy Transfer from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $23.00 price target (up from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.75.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.22.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $34.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.71 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.87% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 78.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.52 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.52%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 60.0% in the fourth quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

About Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET) is a Dallas-based midstream energy company that develops and operates infrastructure for the transportation, storage and processing of hydrocarbons. The company’s operations focus on moving and storing natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil and refined products through an integrated network of pipelines, terminals, storage facilities and processing plants. Energy Transfer provides core midstream services such as gathering, compression, fractionation, processing, and bulk transportation to support production and downstream supply chains.

Its asset base spans an extensive network across the United States, connecting producing regions, processing centers, petrochemical hubs and coastal and inland markets.