Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $23.00 to $25.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Energy Transfer traded as high as $20.67 and last traded at $20.3840, with a volume of 42129858 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $20.08.

ET has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $22.00 target price (down from $25.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

Key Headlines Impacting Energy Transfer

Here are the key news stories impacting Energy Transfer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance and hiked its quarterly distribution after Q1 showed record operating volumes — supports higher cash flow visibility and yield appeal for income investors. Energy Transfer (ET) Is Up 5.0% After Raising 2026 EBITDA Guidance And Distributions – Has The Bull Case Changed?
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target (and reiterated a Buy), signaling analyst confidence and adding upward pressure on the stock. Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stifel Nicolaus Analyst Says
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage consensus is an average “Buy,” reinforcing favorable analyst sentiment and supporting demand into the name. Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages
• Positive Sentiment: Several bullish write-ups (The Motley Fool, Seeking Alpha) argue ET remains attractive given cheap valuation, growth projects feeding EBITDA, and positioning to benefit from rising power demand related to AI/data centers. Prediction: Energy Transfer’s Stock Is Still a Buy After a Strong Start to the Year
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q1 earnings call transcript is available for investors who want management detail on volumes, project timelines, and capital allocation. (Useful for due diligence but not a single price catalyst.) Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector/peer news (Ormat, Occidental, and a pipeline stake sale by Ares) may affect sentiment for midstream energy names broadly but are not direct ET-specific catalysts. Ares Management Corp. (ARES) Acquires 32.4% Stake in Rover Pipeline from Blackstone
• Negative Sentiment: Some analyst pieces flag margin compression and declining margins in Q1 — a reminder that while volumes rose, unit-level profitability and near-term margin risk could temper upside. Energy Transfer: AI Needs Terawatts, Not Just Chips

Institutional Trading of Energy Transfer

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ET. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 41.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 86,310,272 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,423,256,000 after buying an additional 25,366,594 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $264,309,000. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 83,843,087 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,382,573,000 after buying an additional 6,192,066 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 57,862,666 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $992,923,000 after buying an additional 1,773,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 128.0% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 2,585,439 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $42,634,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451,613 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Energy Transfer Trading Up 0.2%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.51 billion, a PE ratio of 16.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.57.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.05). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $27.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.3375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 111.67%.

Energy Transfer Company Profile

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.