Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Down 1.4% on Analyst Downgrade

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)’s share price traded down 1.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $22.00 to $21.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Energy Transfer traded as low as $16.25 and last traded at $16.2670. 17,257,899 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the average session volume of 15,007,681 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.49.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ET. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 price target (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $17.00 target price on shares of Energy Transfer and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their target price on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Energy Transfer has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Energy Transfer news, Director Kelcy L. Warren purchased 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $16.95 per share, with a total value of $16,950,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 104,577,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,772,593,760.85. This represents a 0.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ryan Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. CNB Bank lifted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 111.1% during the 2nd quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the first quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $16.83 and a 200-day moving average of $17.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $56.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.75, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.76.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The business had revenue of $19.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a $0.3325 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.1%. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is currently 106.40%.

About Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer LP provides energy-related services. The company owns and operates natural gas transportation pipeline, and natural gas storage facilities in Texas and Oklahoma; and approximately 20,090 miles of interstate natural gas pipeline. It also sells natural gas to electric utilities, independent power plants, local distribution and other marketing companies, and industrial end-users.