Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Cuts Stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. cut its position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 82.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,085 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,062 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $62,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Eversource Energy by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,561,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387,072 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the third quarter worth $808,783,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,933,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $570,500,000 after purchasing an additional 226,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $613,233,000 after purchasing an additional 268,588 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

Shares of Eversource Energy stock opened at $62.68 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $60.58 and its 200 day moving average is $61.46. Eversource Energy has a one year low of $54.75 and a one 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 market cap of $23.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a $0.7525 dividend. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 130.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eversource Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.40.

Insider Transactions at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was 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 owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This trade represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This 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 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.