Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. Acquisition May Not Be in the Best Interests of ETP Unitholders

NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- WeissLaw LLP is investigating possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by the Board of Directors of Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. ("ETP" or the "Company") in connection with the proposed acquisition of the Company by Sunoco Logistics Partners, L.P. ("Sunoco").  On November 21, 2016, the Company announced that it had reached a definitive agreement for Sunoco to acquire ETP in a unit-for-unit transaction.  Under the terms of the agreement, the Company's unitholders will receive 1.5 common units of Sunoco for each unit of ETP they hold; representing consideration of $35.57 based on Sunoco's December 8 closing price.  

WeissLaw is investigating whether ETP's Board acted to maximize shareholder value prior to entering into the agreement.  Notably, at least one analyst set a target price of $50.00 per unit, or approximately $15.00 above the consideration.  In addition, the consideration is also $8.13 lower than ETP's 52-week high of $43.50.  Lastly, according to Seeking Alpha, the meagre 10% premium offered to ETP unitholders will be mostly wiped out, expecting a "distribution reduction of around 28%, from ~$4.22 to ~3.06 per unit" which, given its new guidance, will take Sunoco many years to recover. 

Given these facts, WeissLaw is investigating whether ETP's Board acted in the best interests of ETP's public shareholders to maximize shareholder value prior to entering into the agreement.  If you own ETP shares and would like more information about your rights or our investigation, or if you have information to share with us, please contact Joshua Rubin by telephone at [phone] or by email at [e-mail]. 

WeissLaw LLP has litigated hundreds of stockholder class and derivative actions for violations of corporate and fiduciary duties.  We have recovered over a billion dollars for defrauded clients and obtained important corporate governance relief in many of these cases.  If you have information or would like legal advice concerning possible corporate wrongdoing (including insider trading, waste of corporate assets, accounting fraud, or materially misleading information), consumer fraud (including false advertising, defective products, or other deceptive business practices), or anti-trust violations, please email us at [e-mail] or fill out the form on our website, http://www.weisslawllp.com/energy-transfer-partners-l-p/

 

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