Short Interest in Enbridge Inc. (NYSE:ENB) Increases By 9.4%

Enbridge Inc. (NYSE:ENB) (TSE:ENB) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 26,810,000 shares, an increase of 9.4% from the March 31st total of 24,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,910,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Enbridge Price Performance

Enbridge stock traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $35.61. 2,885,077 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,775,216. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.84. Enbridge has a 12 month low of $31.03 and a 12 month high of $40.30. The business’s 50-day moving average is $35.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.85.

Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) (TSE:ENB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.03). Enbridge had a return on equity of 10.23% and a net margin of 13.97%. The company had revenue of $8.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.62 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Enbridge will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Enbridge Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $0.677 dividend. This is a positive change from Enbridge’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Enbridge’s dividend payout ratio is currently 129.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Enbridge

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Enbridge by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,623 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $203,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp. raised its holdings in Enbridge by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 1,519 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Enbridge by 3.7% in the first quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,827 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Enbridge by 0.4% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 86,751 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $3,139,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Investment Counsel Inc raised its holdings in Enbridge by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc now owns 6,564 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. 54.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ENB. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Enbridge in a report on Thursday, January 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Enbridge in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Enbridge currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.20.

About Enbridge

Enbridge Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States.