Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $62.75.

SUN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Sunoco from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Sunoco from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Sunoco from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SUN. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sunoco by 16.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,902 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Sunoco by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 44,013 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,488,000 after buying an additional 1,393 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Sunoco by 42.8% in the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 276,829 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $15,652,000 after buying an additional 83,008 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sunoco in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its position in shares of Sunoco by 15.1% during the second quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 5,354 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. 24.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sunoco Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE SUN opened at $53.36 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.33. Sunoco has a 52 week low of $49.45 and a 52 week high of $64.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $53.13 and a 200-day moving average of $53.75.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($1.79). Sunoco had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 2.72%. The firm had revenue of $5.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.95 earnings per share. Sunoco’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sunoco will post 7.16 EPS for the current year.

Sunoco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.8756 per share. This represents a $3.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Sunoco’s payout ratio is presently 80.46%.

Sunoco Company Profile

Sunoco LP, together with its subsidiaries, distributes and retails motor fuels in the United States. It operates through two segments: Fuel Distribution and Marketing, and All Other. The Fuel Distribution and Marketing segment purchases motor fuel, as well as other petroleum products, such as propane and lubricating oil from independent refiners and oil companies and supplies it to company-operated retail stores, independently operated commission agents, and retail stores, as well as other commercial customers, including unbranded retail stores, other fuel distributors, school districts, municipalities, and other industrial customers.