Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Sunoco LP (NYSE:SUN) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com 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 price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $62.75.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on SUN shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Sunoco from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price 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.

Sunoco Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of SUN opened at $52.31 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 1.36. Sunoco has a 52 week low of $49.45 and a 52 week high of $64.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $52.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

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

Sunoco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.8756 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.70%. Sunoco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.46%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sunoco

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sunoco in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sunoco in the 2nd quarter valued at $93,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Sunoco in the 3rd quarter valued at $165,000. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Sunoco by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tyche Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sunoco by 5.4% during the third quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,905 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 24.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sunoco

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.