Sigma Planning Corp Sells 14,996 Shares of Energy Transfer LP $ET

Sigma Planning Corp cut its stake in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 10.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 126,733 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 14,996 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $2,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ryan Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Energy Transfer during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Energy Transfer during the first quarter valued at $33,000. CNB Bank lifted its position in Energy Transfer by 111.1% during the second quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Energy Transfer during the first quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Energy Transfer during the first quarter valued at $40,000. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

Shares of Energy Transfer stock opened at $16.57 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.42. Energy Transfer LP has a 52 week low of $14.60 and a 52 week high of $21.45. The company has a market capitalization of $56.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32. The company had revenue of $19.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.07 billion. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.08% and a net margin of 5.80%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect 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 will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a $0.3325 dividend. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.33 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ET. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (up from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $23.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $17.00 price objective on Energy Transfer and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.23.

Insider Activity at Energy Transfer

In other news, Director Kelcy L. Warren bought 1,350,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were bought 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. This represents a 1.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.28% of the company’s stock.

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.