Edison International (NYSE:EIX) Given New $72.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Edison International (NYSE:EIX) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $74.00 to $72.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an underweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

EIX has been the subject of a number of other reports. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Edison International from $82.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Edison International from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Edison International from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Edison International from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on Edison International from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Edison International currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.75.

Edison International Stock Down 0.7 %

EIX opened at $86.51 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $33.49 billion, a PE ratio of 25.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Edison International has a fifty-two week low of $63.15 and a fifty-two week high of $88.77. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.64 and a 200-day moving average of $80.08.

Edison International (NYSE:EIX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.01 billion. Edison International had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.38 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Edison International will post 4.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Edison International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 7th were issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 7th. Edison International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.50%.

Insider Transactions at Edison International

In related news, VP Adam S. Umanoff sold 25,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.05, for a total transaction of $2,127,657.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO J Andrew Murphy sold 23,896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.45, for a total value of $2,041,913.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,696,182.50. This represents a 54.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 49,516 shares of company stock valued at $4,169,652. Company insiders own 1.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Edison International

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Edison International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Edison International in the third quarter worth $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Edison International by 125.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 351 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Edison International in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Edison International in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.95% of the company’s stock.

About Edison International

Edison International, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation and distribution of electric power. The company supplies and delivers electricity to approximately 50,000 square mile area of southern California to residential, commercial, industrial, public authorities, agricultural, and other sectors.