Xponance Inc. Raises Stock Position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 71,488 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,118 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $4,106,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 1.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,539,895 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,737,990,000 after purchasing an additional 430,587 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $808,783,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,933,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $570,500,000 after buying an additional 226,972 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Eversource Energy by 3.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,040,171 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $613,233,000 after buying an additional 268,588 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in Eversource Energy by 2.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,019,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $477,647,000 after buying an additional 185,381 shares during the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:ES opened at $61.58 on Friday. Eversource Energy has a 1 year low of $54.75 and a 1 year high of $69.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $59.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.66, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.7525 dividend. This is an increase from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 130.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays lowered their price target on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This represents a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

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.