Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) Shares Acquired by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) by 62.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,442,111 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 552,523 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.34% of Entergy worth $109,341,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Entergy by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY increased its stake in Entergy by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 340 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Entergy by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Sandy Spring Bank boosted its position in Entergy by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co boosted its position in Entergy by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 364 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of ETR stock opened at $83.11 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $83.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.72. Entergy Corporation has a 1 year low of $51.75 and a 1 year high of $88.38. The firm has a market cap of $35.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.13, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.56.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.03. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 8.90%. The firm had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. Analysts predict that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ETR shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Entergy from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Entergy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Entergy from $85.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.25.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.