Verity & Verity LLC Trims Stake in ONEOK, Inc. $OKE

Verity & Verity LLC lowered its position in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 267,434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,246 shares during the period. ONEOK accounts for about 1.6% of Verity & Verity LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in ONEOK were worth $19,515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates bought a new position in ONEOK in the third quarter worth $29,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ONEOK in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ONEOK in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of ONEOK in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH purchased a new position in ONEOK during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. 69.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Brian L. Derksen purchased 2,500 shares of ONEOK stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $66.00 per share, for a total transaction of $165,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 21,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,399,200. The trade was a 13.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

ONEOK Stock Performance

OKE stock opened at $74.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.94. ONEOK, Inc. has a 12-month low of $64.02 and a 12-month high of $111.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.28.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.23 billion. ONEOK had a return on equity of 15.12% and a net margin of 10.58%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. ONEOK has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.970-5.770 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.5%. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OKE has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $78.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $72.00 target price on shares of ONEOK in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Scotiabank cut their price target on ONEOK from $88.00 to $87.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on ONEOK from $90.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on ONEOK from $102.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ONEOK has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

About ONEOK

ONEOK, Inc (NYSE: OKE) is a publicly traded midstream energy company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The company owns and operates a portfolio of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) pipelines, processing facilities, fractionators and storage and terminal assets. Its operations are focused on gathering, processing, transporting, fractionating and marketing NGLs and interstate natural gas, providing critical infrastructure that connects hydrocarbon production to refineries, petrochemical plants and other end markets.

ONEOK’s asset base includes pipeline systems and processing plants that move and condition natural gas, along with infrastructure for the transportation, storage and fractionation of NGLs such as ethane, propane and butane.