Sage Investment Counsel LLC Buys Shares of 137,075 Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Sage Investment Counsel LLC bought a new stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 137,075 shares of the pipeline company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,685,000. Energy Transfer accounts for approximately 3.5% of Sage Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 65.0% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 2,138.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,746 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. 38.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Price Performance

ET opened at $19.32 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $19.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.01. Energy Transfer LP has a 12-month low of $14.60 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 capitalization of $66.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.09, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.69.

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

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.325 per share. This represents a $1.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.73%. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Energy Transfer’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ET has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Energy Transfer from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.55.

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.