ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) Stake Lifted by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in shares of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 506,707 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,911 shares during the period. ONEOK accounts for about 0.7% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.11% of ONEOK worth $31,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Command Bank raised its stake in shares of ONEOK by 401.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Command Bank now owns 491 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Miller Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in ONEOK in the first quarter worth about $29,000. WealthPLAN Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of ONEOK during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ONEOK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of ONEOK by 211.2% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 473 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. 68.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

OKE has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com cut ONEOK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Raymond James upped their target price on ONEOK from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Truist Financial increased their price target on ONEOK from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on ONEOK from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ONEOK presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.73.

Insider Transactions at ONEOK

In other ONEOK news, Director Brian L. Derksen acquired 4,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $59.59 per share, for a total transaction of $291,991.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 18,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,333. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Brian L. Derksen bought 4,900 shares of ONEOK stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $59.59 per share, for a total transaction of $291,991.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 18,700 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,333. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Pierce Norton bought 24,607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $60.96 per share, with a total value of $1,500,042.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 42,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,561,356.32. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ONEOK Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:OKE opened at $67.54 on Friday. ONEOK, Inc. has a 12-month low of $50.50 and a 12-month high of $71.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.70. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $65.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.32.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.13 billion. ONEOK had a return on equity of 35.84% and a net margin of 12.68%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 1st were given a $0.955 dividend. This represents a $3.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 31st. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio is 70.48%.

About ONEOK

ONEOK, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in gathering, processing, fractionation, storage, transportation, and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. It operates through three segments: Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, and Natural Gas Pipelines segments.