Citigroup Inc. Sells 2,380,546 Shares of Energy Transfer LP $ET

Citigroup Inc. cut its position in shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 26.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,576,525 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 2,380,546 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $119,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ET. Ryan Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Energy Transfer during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the first quarter worth $33,000. CNB Bank boosted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 111.1% during the second quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,900 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the first quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Energy Transfer in the first quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kelcy L. Warren acquired 1,350,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.36 per share, for a total transaction of $23,436,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 69,178,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,200,938,360.72. This trade represents a 1.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on ET shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $23.00 price target (up from $21.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Energy Transfer from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $17.00 price target on Energy Transfer and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Energy Transfer in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Energy Transfer has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.08.

Energy Transfer Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:ET opened at $16.96 on Tuesday. Energy Transfer LP has a 52-week low of $14.60 and a 52-week high of $21.45. 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 company has a market capitalization of $58.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.40.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.06). Energy Transfer had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 11.08%. The business had revenue of $19.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. Energy Transfer’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.3325 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $1.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.8%. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is 106.40%.

Energy Transfer Company 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.