Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 1.1 %

PEG stock opened at $79.10 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $84.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.99. The company has a market capitalization of $39.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 12 month low of $63.31 and a 12 month high of $95.22.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is 71.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total value of $117,005.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares in the company, valued at $12,245,040.92. This represents a 0.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PEG. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Chapman Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 105.9% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 315 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.