Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on PEG. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays downgraded Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PEG opened at $81.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.06. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 1 year low of $63.31 and a 1 year high of $95.22.

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

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.09%. This is an increase from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group’s payout ratio is 71.19%.

Insider Transactions at Public Service Enterprise Group

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,791 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 1,184 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 123,964 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,059,000 after acquiring an additional 2,128 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 8.6% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 673,031 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,041,000 after purchasing an additional 53,432 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,995 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Austin Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the third quarter valued at $203,000. Institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company 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.