1832 Asset Management L.P. Trims Stock Position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

1832 Asset Management L.P. decreased its holdings in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 35.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 428,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 240,261 shares during the quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Entergy were worth $45,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 64.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,170,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $440,690,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630,057 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy in the 4th quarter valued at $127,675,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Entergy during the 1st quarter valued at about $92,257,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Entergy by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,961,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $400,901,000 after acquiring an additional 796,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ClearBridge Investments Ltd increased its stake in Entergy by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd now owns 3,115,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,254,000 after purchasing an additional 706,059 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Entergy from $116.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Entergy from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Entergy from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $109.50 price target (down previously from $117.00) on shares of Entergy in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Entergy from $111.00 to $104.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Entergy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.42.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total value of $1,003,284.59. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,465.86. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 1,500 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.23, for a total transaction of $165,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,479 shares in the company, valued at $273,260.17. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total transaction of $1,003,284.59. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,465.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Stock Performance

NYSE:ETR traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $113.63. The stock had a trading volume of 1,405,502 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,290,799. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $108.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $105.21. Entergy Co. has a twelve month low of $87.10 and a twelve month high of $114.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.40, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.71.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $31.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Entergy Co. will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.98%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.34%.

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.