Wedbush Securities Inc. Buys 41,438 Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 44.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 135,281 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,438 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $2,650,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. United Community Bank purchased a new position in shares of Energy Transfer in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Energy Transfer during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Energy Transfer by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 38.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Stock Down 9.1 %

NYSE ET opened at $16.12 on Friday. Energy Transfer LP has a 12 month low of $14.90 and a 12 month high of $21.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $55.30 billion, a PE ratio of 12.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $19.18 and its 200 day moving average is $18.44.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The pipeline company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 5.74%. Research analysts predict that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.07%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This is an increase from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio is 101.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ET. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $23.00 price target on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Energy Transfer in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.09.

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.