Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) Short Interest Update

Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,640,000 shares, an increase of 68.2% from the January 15th total of 1,570,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 499,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.3 days.

Sunoco Price Performance

Shares of SUN opened at $57.15 on Friday. Sunoco has a fifty-two week low of $49.45 and a fifty-two week high of $64.89. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $54.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.71 billion, a PE ratio of 13.14 and a beta of 1.36.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The oil and gas company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.73). Sunoco had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 2.72%. Equities analysts predict that Sunoco will post 9.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sunoco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.8865 per share. This represents a $3.55 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.20%. This is an increase from Sunoco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Sunoco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sunoco

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SUN. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sunoco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in shares of Sunoco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sunoco by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,245 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sunoco by 93.3% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,633 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sunoco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $90,000. 24.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SUN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Sunoco from $61.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Sunoco from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Sunoco from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.43.

About Sunoco

Sunoco LP, together with its subsidiaries, distributes and retails motor fuels in the United States. It operates through two segments: Fuel Distribution and Marketing, and All Other. The Fuel Distribution and Marketing segment purchases motor fuel, as well as other petroleum products, such as propane and lubricating oil from independent refiners and oil companies and supplies it to company-operated retail stores, independently operated commission agents, and retail stores, as well as other commercial customers, including unbranded retail stores, other fuel distributors, school districts, municipalities, and other industrial customers.