Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Purchased by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,137 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $122,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ES. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 162.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 566 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 104.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 3.8 %

NYSE ES opened at $60.97 on Friday. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $54.75 and a 1-year high of $69.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The company has a market capitalization of $22.36 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.29.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.7525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This is a boost from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.94%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ES has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.45.

About Eversource Energy

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.