Insider Selling: Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) VP Sells $61,730.20 in Stock

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Eversource Energy Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of ES opened at $63.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.49. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $54.75 and a 1-year high of $69.01. The stock has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.62.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. Equities analysts forecast that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.74%. This is a boost from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ES has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.45.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 6,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 38.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 710 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,368,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. 79.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Eversource Energy

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.