Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) Shares Purchased by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 142.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 207,709 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 122,203 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $2,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rise Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,978 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Energy Transfer in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. IMA Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. now owns 2,400 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in Energy Transfer in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Energy Transfer Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of Energy Transfer stock opened at $15.53 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $15.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $12.18 and a twelve month high of $16.04. The stock has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24 and a beta of 1.64.

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

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 7th were given a $0.315 dividend. This is a boost from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.12%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 6th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 115.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ET. Citigroup boosted 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. Mizuho reissued 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. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.00.

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.