Man Group plc Cuts Stock Position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Man Group plc lessened its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 685,783 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 28,861 shares during the period. Man Group plc owned 0.19% of Eversource Energy worth $39,385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 10.5% during 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 in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 38.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 9,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $522,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 7,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. The trade was a 12.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the company’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 directly owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

ES opened at $61.39 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $59.51 and its 200-day moving average is $59.89. The stock has a market cap of $22.55 billion, a PE ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Eversource Energy has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The firm had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.65 billion. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is 129.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ES. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $58.00 target price (down from $69.00) on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $65.78.

Eversource Energy 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.