ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE:OKE) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $95.00 to $106.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. ONEOK traded as high as $99.85 and last traded at $96.17, with a volume of 509031 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $96.01.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of ONEOK from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of ONEOK in a research report on Monday. Citigroup upped their price objective on ONEOK from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on ONEOK from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of ONEOK from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.50.

Key ONEOK News

Here are the key news stories impacting ONEOK this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Permian acquisition strengthens growth outlook: ONEOK agreed to acquire Brazos Midstream’s Midland Basin natural-gas gathering and processing assets for $4.425 billion in cash. The deal is expected to more than double ONEOK’s Midland Basin processing capacity, add approximately $80 million in annual synergies and be immediately accretive to earnings and free cash flow per share. ONEOK to Acquire Brazos Midstream’s Permian Midland Basin Assets
• Positive Sentiment: Apollo financing supports deleveraging: Apollo-managed funds will make a $9 billion nonvoting minority equity investment. ONEOK plans to use roughly $5 billion to reduce existing debt, targeting debt-to-EBITDA of about 3.25x, while using up to $2 billion for cash tender offers on outstanding notes. Lower leverage could improve financial flexibility for organic investment, dividend increases and share repurchases. ONEOK Announces Cash Tender Offers
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target increased: JPMorgan raised its price target for ONEOK from $95 to $106 while maintaining a neutral rating, signaling improved valuation potential despite a lack of an outright bullish recommendation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Supportive sector backdrop: Midstream companies have broadly raised full-year guidance after a strong second quarter, and accelerating natural-gas infrastructure demand may provide a favorable operating environment for ONEOK. Midstream Scales Up Natural Gas Infrastructure
• Negative Sentiment: Transaction execution and valuation risks remain: The acquisition and related Apollo financing substantially reshape ONEOK’s capital structure and add integration, governance and transaction-complexity risks. JPMorgan’s neutral rating also suggests the expected benefits may already be reflected in the stock’s valuation.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ONEOK

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GTS Securities LLC lifted its stake in ONEOK by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 2,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of ONEOK by 1.8% in the second quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $574,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC lifted its position in shares of ONEOK by 4.7% in the first quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 2,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC boosted its stake in ONEOK by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 5,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $395,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Welch Group LLC boosted its stake in ONEOK by 0.8% during the first quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 14,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,343,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. 69.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ONEOK Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.84. The firm has a market cap of $60.23 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.73.

ONEOK (NYSE:OKE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.07. ONEOK had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 9.29%.The firm had revenue of $12.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. ONEOK has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.680-5.680 EPS. Equities analysts predict that ONEOK, Inc. will post 5.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ONEOK Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a dividend of $1.07 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. ONEOK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.79%.

ONEOK Company Profile

ONEOK, Inc (NYSE: OKE) is a publicly traded midstream energy company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The company owns and operates a portfolio of natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) pipelines, processing facilities, fractionators and storage and terminal assets. Its operations are focused on gathering, processing, transporting, fractionating and marketing NGLs and interstate natural gas, providing critical infrastructure that connects hydrocarbon production to refineries, petrochemical plants and other end markets.

ONEOK’s asset base includes pipeline systems and processing plants that move and condition natural gas, along with infrastructure for the transportation, storage and fractionation of NGLs such as ethane, propane and butane.