Retirement Investment Advisors Inc. Buys 8,096 Shares of Energy Transfer LP $ET

Retirement Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 43.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,603 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after buying an additional 8,096 shares during the period. Retirement Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $482,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. CNB Bank raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 111.1% during the second quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ET shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $17.00 price target on Energy Transfer and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 price objective (up from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.23.

Insider Activity at Energy Transfer

In other Energy Transfer news, Director Kelcy L. Warren purchased 1,350,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $17.36 per share, for a total transaction of $23,436,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 69,178,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,200,938,360.72. The trade was a 1.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Energy Transfer Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE ET opened at $16.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The company has a market capitalization of $56.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.74, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.41. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $14.60 and a twelve month high of $21.45.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.08% and a net margin of 5.80%.The company had revenue of $19.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.3325 per share. This represents a $1.33 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is currently 106.40%.

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.