Delta Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)

Delta Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) by 21.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,821 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,145 shares during the period. Delta Investment Management LLC’s holdings in ONEOK were worth $549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OKE. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of ONEOK by 10.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,237,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,757,405,000 after buying an additional 5,525,010 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in ONEOK by 37.7% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 13,292,341 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $843,133,000 after acquiring an additional 3,636,660 shares in the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. lifted its position in shares of ONEOK by 3,478.3% during the third quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 3,578,316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $226,973,000 after purchasing an additional 3,478,316 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of ONEOK by 65.9% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,132,301 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $515,832,000 after purchasing an additional 3,229,046 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in ONEOK by 5,247.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,463,929 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $173,017,000 after purchasing an additional 2,417,849 shares in the last quarter. 69.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ONEOK Stock Performance

OKE opened at $81.06 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $47.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.67. ONEOK, Inc. has a 1-year low of $55.91 and a 1-year high of $81.81. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $77.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.68.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.21 by ($0.03). ONEOK had a net margin of 15.04% and a return on equity of 22.57%. The firm had revenue of $5.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Research analysts predict that ONEOK, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 17th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the utilities provider to purchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

ONEOK Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.35%.

Insider Activity at ONEOK

In related news, Director Wayne Thomas Smith bought 2,700 shares of ONEOK stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $75.25 per share, with a total value of $203,175.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,175. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OKE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. US Capital Advisors lowered ONEOK from an “overweight” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 19th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of ONEOK from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on ONEOK from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ONEOK presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $82.25.

ONEOK Profile

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.