Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD)

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 30,862 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 143% compared to the average daily volume of 12,726 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John R. Rutherford bought 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $31.35 per share, for a total transaction of $470,250.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 158,586 shares in the company, valued at $4,971,671.10. The trade was a 10.45% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William C. Montgomery acquired 16,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $31.55 per share, with a total value of $504,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 136,920 shares in the company, valued at $4,319,826. The trade was a 13.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 32.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Enterprise Products Partners

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Enterprise Products Partners during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new position in Enterprise Products Partners in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in Enterprise Products Partners in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Enterprise Products Partners in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Security National Bank bought a new position in Enterprise Products Partners in the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

Enterprise Products Partners Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE EPD opened at $31.03 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.24. Enterprise Products Partners has a one year low of $27.77 and a one year high of $34.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.01). Enterprise Products Partners had a return on equity of 19.81% and a net margin of 10.71%.The business had revenue of $11.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Enterprise Products Partners will post 2.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Enterprise Products Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. Enterprise Products Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EPD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lowered their target price on Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Enterprise Products Partners in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Mizuho set a $38.00 target price on Enterprise Products Partners and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Enterprise Products Partners from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Enterprise Products Partners from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.82.

Enterprise Products Partners Company Profile

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. provides midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, petrochemicals, and refined products. It operates in four segments: NGL Pipelines & Services, Crude Oil Pipelines & Services, Natural Gas Pipelines & Services, and Petrochemical & Refined Products Services.