Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $67.40.

Several research firms have weighed in on ES. Barclays lowered their price objective 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

NYSE ES opened at $60.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $22.35 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.04 and a 200-day moving average of $61.75. Eversource Energy has a 52-week low of $54.75 and a 52-week high of $69.01.

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

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business 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 an increase 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 4.94%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,318.26. This trade represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $192,507.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Eversource Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $808,783,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $188,838,000. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 6,482,546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $367,691,000 after buying an additional 1,579,818 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Eversource Energy by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,561,936,000 after buying an additional 1,387,072 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magellan Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 6,474,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $371,829,000 after buying an additional 890,514 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

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.