ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) Sets New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $112.00 to $132.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. ONEOK traded as high as $111.15 and last traded at $111.15, with a volume of 88100 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $109.81.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of ONEOK from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Tudor Pickering raised ONEOK to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley raised ONEOK from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $103.00 to $111.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on ONEOK from $88.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on shares of ONEOK in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at ONEOK

In other news, Director Pattye L. Moore sold 3,379 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.01, for a total transaction of $310,901.79. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ONEOK

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OKE. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of ONEOK during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in shares of ONEOK in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in ONEOK in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in ONEOK during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of ONEOK in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.13% of the company’s stock.

ONEOK Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $96.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97, a PEG ratio of 5.48 and a beta of 1.66.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. ONEOK had a net margin of 14.05% and a return on equity of 16.84%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.15 EPS for the current year.

ONEOK Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.85%.

About ONEOK

ONEOK, Inc engages in gathering, processing, fractionation, storage, transportation, and marketing of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States. It operates through four segments: Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, Natural Gas Pipelines, and Refined Products and Crude.