Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Shares Up 2.4% After Insider Buying Activity

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)’s share price shot up 2.4% on Monday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $20.63 and last traded at $20.62. 11,680,893 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 13,569,888 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.13.

Specifically, Director James Richard Perry acquired 12,359 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.23 per share, with a total value of $250,022.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 208,046 shares in the company, valued at $4,208,770.58. This trade represents a 6.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ET shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price objective (up from $23.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective (up from $24.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Monday. Finally, Zacks Research raised Energy Transfer from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Energy Transfer presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $23.92.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $19.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.55.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $34.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.71 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 4.87% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 78.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.5%. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Transfer

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ET. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arrow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,866 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co lifted its position in Energy Transfer by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 26,035 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $498,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 22,822 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 219,232 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $4,231,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Energy Transfer by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Mountain Capital Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,007 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

About Energy Transfer

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.