American Century Companies Inc. Buys 80,268 Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 543,158 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 80,268 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Exelon were worth $20,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of EXC. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in Exelon by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 2,457 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its holdings in Exelon by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 9,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC raised its holdings in Exelon by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 13,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its position in shares of Exelon by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 18,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $697,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Exelon by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $450,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. 80.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelon Stock Performance

Shares of EXC opened at $44.71 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51. Exelon Co. has a 12 month low of $34.01 and a 12 month high of $45.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 10.68%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Exelon Co. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Exelon from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Exelon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Exelon from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Exelon currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.13.

Insider Transactions at Exelon

In other news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of Exelon stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total transaction of $59,353.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Exelon Profile

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.