Natixis Buys 44,300 Shares of Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD)

Natixis lifted its stake in shares of Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD) by 144.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 74,872 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,300 shares during the quarter. Natixis’ holdings in Enterprise Products Partners were worth $2,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 1,368.4% in the 1st quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 1,468,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $42,849,000 after acquiring an additional 1,368,440 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 2,436.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,171,302 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $308,640,000 after acquiring an additional 1,125,117 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC lifted its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 6,126.0% in the 1st quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC now owns 548,888 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $16,017,000 after acquiring an additional 540,072 shares in the last quarter. GP Brinson Investments LLC lifted its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 174.0% in the 1st quarter. GP Brinson Investments LLC now owns 743,733 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $21,702,000 after acquiring an additional 472,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK lifted its position in Enterprise Products Partners by 3,955.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 462,095 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $12,176,000 after acquiring an additional 450,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

Enterprise Products Partners Stock Performance

Shares of EPD stock traded down $0.13 on Thursday, hitting $29.57. 3,510,332 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,382,458. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.04. Enterprise Products Partners L.P. has a one year low of $25.61 and a one year high of $30.05. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $28.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.28.

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $14.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.82 billion. Enterprise Products Partners had a return on equity of 19.73% and a net margin of 10.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Enterprise Products Partners L.P. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Products Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This is an increase from Enterprise Products Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.10%. Enterprise Products Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on EPD. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Enterprise Products Partners from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Enterprise Products Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Enterprise Products Partners from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Enterprise Products Partners from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of Enterprise Products Partners in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $32.77.

About Enterprise Products Partners

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. provides midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, petrochemicals, and refined products. It operates in four segments: NGL Pipelines & Services, Crude Oil Pipelines & Services, Natural Gas Pipelines & Services, and Petrochemical & Refined Products Services.