Baird Financial Group Inc. Raises Stake in Energy Transfer LP $ET

Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 42.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,074 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,500 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

Shares of ET opened at $17.42 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.69. Energy Transfer LP has a 1 year low of $14.60 and a 1 year high of $21.45.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.32. The company had revenue of $19.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.07 billion. Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.08%. Energy Transfer’s revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.6%. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is presently 102.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Energy Transfer

In other news, Director Kelcy L. Warren acquired 1,350,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.36 per share, with a total value of $23,436,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 69,178,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,200,938,360.72. This represents a 1.99% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director James Richard Perry sold 1,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.48, for a total transaction of $25,299.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,523 shares in the company, valued at $453,185.04. This represents a 5.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 price objective (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $23.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.54.

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.