Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Trading Down 1.2% – Time to Sell?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) shares fell 1.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $19.33 and last traded at $19.3660. 8,639,757 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 15,867,640 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.60.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ET. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Truist Financial began coverage on Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $23.00 price target on the stock. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $23.00 price target (up from $22.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $23.45.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $19.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.96, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.57.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $27.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.78 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 9.77%. Energy Transfer’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.3375 per share. This represents a $1.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is currently 112.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 60.0% during the fourth quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.