Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Sold by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV lessened its holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 46,797 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $2,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of ES. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $808,783,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Eversource Energy by 446.0% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 749,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $51,019,000 after purchasing an additional 612,421 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 41.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,735,901 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $99,554,000 after buying an additional 510,582 shares during the last quarter. 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 valued at $1,737,990,000 after buying an additional 430,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 518.1% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 480,278 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,683,000 after acquiring an additional 402,574 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Stock Up 0.0 %

ES opened at $63.41 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $58.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.45, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.62. Eversource Energy has a fifty-two week low of $54.75 and a fifty-two week 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.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. On average, research analysts expect that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.75%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 123.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on ES shares. Barclays lowered their price target on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eversource Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.45.

Eversource Energy 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.