Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. decreased its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 31.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 199,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 90,164 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.05% of Eversource Energy worth $11,465,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ES. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in Eversource Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $808,783,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 32.2% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 6,482,546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $367,691,000 after buying an additional 1,579,818 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,561,936,000 after buying an additional 1,387,072 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Eversource Energy by 446.0% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 749,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,019,000 after buying an additional 612,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Eversource Energy by 41.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,735,901 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $99,554,000 after acquiring an additional 510,582 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ES opened at $61.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.46, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $54.75 and a 1-year high of $69.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $60.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.62.

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

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a $0.7525 dividend. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.92%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value 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 $1,535,318.26. This trade represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares in the company, valued at $1,411,496.46. The trade was a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on 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 raised shares of Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.40.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

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.