Candriam S.C.A. Cuts Stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Candriam S.C.A. lowered its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,860 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $5,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,829,634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,051,744,000 after purchasing an additional 49,285 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 19.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,401,024 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $481,825,000 after purchasing an additional 877,345 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $376,209,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 125.3% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,384,803 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $285,982,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882,667 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,030,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,012,000 after purchasing an additional 78,452 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 1.1 %

Public Service Enterprise Group stock opened at $79.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $63.31 and a 12 month high of $95.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.44 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.03.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Public Service Enterprise Group

In other news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 126,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,536,332.10. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group 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.