Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $61.88.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EVRG shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised Evergy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Evergy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock.

Insider Transactions at Evergy

In related news, SVP Charles A. Caisley sold 9,236 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.63, for a total transaction of $550,742.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 33,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,993,132.75. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62.93. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Evergy by 66.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 51,538 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,751,000 after purchasing an additional 20,538 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in Evergy by 60.4% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 15,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $829,000 after acquiring an additional 5,844 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in Evergy by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 6,076 shares of the company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Evergy by 69.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 3,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 4.8% during the second quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 9,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Stock Performance

Shares of Evergy stock opened at $64.63 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.55. Evergy has a one year low of $48.04 and a one year high of $65.47. The company has a market cap of $14.86 billion, a PE ratio of 17.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.62.

Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. Evergy had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 8.77%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Evergy will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.6675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.13%. This is an increase from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Evergy’s payout ratio is currently 72.16%.

Evergy Company Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.