Mizuho Issues Positive Forecast for Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Stock Price

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) had its price target raised by Mizuho from $138.00 to $165.00 in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on ETR. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Entergy from $138.00 to $137.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Entergy from $119.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Entergy from $146.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Entergy from $137.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Entergy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.96.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of Entergy stock opened at $145.96 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $131.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $118.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.71. Entergy has a fifty-two week low of $94.85 and a fifty-two week high of $156.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. Entergy had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 14.83%. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.27 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Entergy will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is 55.05%.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In other Entergy news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $72,018.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,092,241.93. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total transaction of $72,018.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,092,241.93. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $613,431. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,338 shares of company stock valued at $4,460,238 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETR. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 47.1% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,479,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $693,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,075,776 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Entergy by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,170,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $440,690,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630,057 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Entergy by 185.5% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,876,672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $200,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,419 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 12.4% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,926,492 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $741,135,000 after acquiring an additional 763,834 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 89.2% in the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,073,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $114,876,000 after purchasing an additional 506,239 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

About Entergy

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.