Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $20.48 and last traded at $20.46, with a volume of 114938 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $20.29.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on ET shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.82.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $70.05 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.70.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.32. The business had revenue of $20.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.59 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.3225 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.29 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.31%. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 44.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,379,297 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $535,738,000 after buying an additional 10,195,768 shares in the last quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 15,738,594 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $308,319,000 after buying an additional 388,073 shares during the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 13,139,924 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $210,896,000 after acquiring an additional 352,625 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 36.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,563,478 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $185,594,000 after acquiring an additional 3,106,631 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 45.9% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 9,581,762 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $153,787,000 after purchasing an additional 3,013,973 shares during the period. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Energy Transfer

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.