Public Service Enterprise Group’s (PEG) Buy Rating Reiterated at Guggenheim

Guggenheim reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Guggenheim currently has a $98.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock.

PEG has been the topic of several other reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays downgraded shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Public Service Enterprise Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.50.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 0.5 %

PEG opened at $81.09 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 1-year low of $61.48 and a 1-year high of $95.22. The company has a market capitalization of $40.40 billion, a PE ratio of 19.92, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.99.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.19%.

Insider Activity at Public Service Enterprise Group

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total value of $117,005.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,245,040.92. This trade represents a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Chapman Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 105.9% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 315 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 73.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.