Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Cut to “Neutral” at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH currently has $82.50 price target on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays cut Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Scotiabank upped 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 research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.65.

Public Service Enterprise Group Price Performance

NYSE PEG opened at $83.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $41.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39, 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 quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.68. The business’s fifty day moving average is $83.50 and its 200 day moving average is $86.02. Public Service Enterprise Group has a fifty-two week low of $64.03 and a fifty-two week high of $95.22.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.54 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.04%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.19%.

Insider Transactions at Public Service Enterprise Group

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,791 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,536,332.10. The trade was a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $445,005,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at $376,209,000. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 125.3% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,384,803 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $285,982,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882,667 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 604.5% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,004,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $169,404,000 after acquiring an additional 1,719,614 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 234.1% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,117,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $178,900,000 after purchasing an additional 1,483,662 shares in the last quarter. 73.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.