Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Purchases 1,632 Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. grew its position in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 51,804 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after buying an additional 1,632 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $715,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ET. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Energy Transfer by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,978 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Energy Transfer by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,500 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Energy Transfer during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Community Bank N.A. increased its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 55.9% in the 4th quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,651 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Energy Transfer in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 38.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Energy Transfer Stock Down 1.6 %

ET traded down $0.25 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $15.73. The company had a trading volume of 13,270,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,253,477. The company has a market capitalization of $53.00 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Energy Transfer LP has a one year low of $12.18 and a one year high of $16.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $15.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.35.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The pipeline company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.08. Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 4.85%. The business had revenue of $20.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.46 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.34 earnings per share. Energy Transfer’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $0.317 dividend. This represents a $1.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is currently 115.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ET shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Energy Transfer from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 price target (up from $18.00) on shares of Energy Transfer in a report on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.00.

About Energy Transfer

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.