Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Sunoco from $57.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Sunoco from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Sunoco from $53.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Citigroup lowered shares of Sunoco from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Sunoco from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.71.

Sunoco Price Performance

SUN traded down $1.17 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $55.86. 745,013 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 522,496. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.49. Sunoco has a 52-week low of $41.95 and a 52-week high of $64.89. The company has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.66.

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The oil and gas company reported ($1.50) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.96 by ($2.46). The firm had revenue of $5.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Sunoco had a return on equity of 37.91% and a net margin of 1.71%. Sunoco’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sunoco will post 5.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Sunoco

In other Sunoco news, Director David K. Skidmore purchased 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $52.10 per share, with a total value of $78,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $761,076.80. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sunoco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Sunoco in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sunoco during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. CNB Bank purchased a new position in shares of Sunoco in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Sunoco by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 700 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sunoco during the 1st quarter worth about $55,000. 24.29% of the stock is 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.