Sigma Planning Corp Boosts Stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Sigma Planning Corp raised its position in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 23.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 89,820 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,939 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $1,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rise Advisors LLC grew its stake in Energy Transfer by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,978 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 927 shares in the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Energy Transfer by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,500 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 38.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ET shares. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price objective (up from $18.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

Shares of ET opened at $15.84 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $53.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 1.64. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $12.18 and a twelve month high of $16.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a 50 day moving average of $15.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.27.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The pipeline company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $20.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.46 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.85% and a return on equity of 12.17%. Energy Transfer’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 7th were paid a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.95%. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 6th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.60%.

Energy Transfer Profile

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.