Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 5,991 Shares of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE)

Essex Financial Services Inc. trimmed its position in ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) by 32.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,330 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,991 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in ONEOK were worth $1,238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of ONEOK in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in ONEOK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of ONEOK in the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of ONEOK by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 496 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of ONEOK by 98.1% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 525 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.13% of the company’s stock.

ONEOK Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of ONEOK stock opened at $98.98 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $102.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.71, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.70. ONEOK, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.65 and a 12-month high of $118.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59.

ONEOK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. This is an increase from ONEOK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.99. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

OKE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho raised shares of ONEOK to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays started coverage on ONEOK in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank began coverage on ONEOK in a research note on Friday, January 10th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $109.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of ONEOK from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $112.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.92.

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.