Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) Shares Purchased by Advocate Group LLC

Advocate Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 132,568 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,918 shares during the period. Evergy accounts for 1.5% of Advocate Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Evergy were worth $8,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 71.3% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 5,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $357,000 after buying an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $331,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 5,709.7% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 216,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,295,000 after buying an additional 212,286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $257,000. 87.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Evergy

In other news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares in the company, valued at $62.93. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Evergy Price Performance

Evergy stock opened at $63.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $14.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.53. Evergy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.04 and a 12-month high of $65.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.35 billion. Evergy had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 8.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.6675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This is a boost from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.20%. Evergy’s payout ratio is 72.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Evergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $59.00 to $68.50 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of Evergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Evergy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $65.79.

Evergy Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.