Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC Buys 38,383 Shares of Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET)

Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in Energy Transfer LP (NYSE:ET) by 31.8% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 159,264 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,383 shares during the quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in Energy Transfer were worth $2,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Energy Transfer by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 31,360 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $433,000 after buying an additional 3,254 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Energy Transfer by 130.2% during the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 104,520 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after purchasing an additional 59,115 shares during the period. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP grew its stake in shares of Energy Transfer by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. American Institute for Advanced Investment Management LLP now owns 24,988 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Energy Transfer by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 20,646 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899 shares during the period. Finally, Derbend Asset Management raised its position in Energy Transfer by 108.3% during the 4th quarter. Derbend Asset Management now owns 21,730 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 11,296 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.22% of the company’s stock.

Energy Transfer Stock Performance

NYSE:ET opened at $16.21 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Energy Transfer LP has a twelve month low of $12.46 and a twelve month high of $16.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $15.88 and a 200-day moving average of $15.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.66.

Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The pipeline company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.04). Energy Transfer had a return on equity of 12.22% and a net margin of 4.85%. The company had revenue of $21.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Energy Transfer LP will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Energy Transfer Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.90%. This is a positive change from Energy Transfer’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. Energy Transfer’s payout ratio is presently 116.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on ET. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Energy Transfer from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Energy Transfer from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Energy Transfer presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.29.

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.