UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) Stock

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) had its price target increased by UBS Group from $45.00 to $47.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI raised shares of Exelon from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Guggenheim raised shares of Exelon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Exelon in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.13.

Exelon Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of EXC stock opened at $43.80 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.97 and a 200-day moving average of $39.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. Exelon has a 12-month low of $34.01 and a 12-month high of $45.20. The firm has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Exelon will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Exelon’s payout ratio is currently 65.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $92,134.47. The trade was a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 111 Capital purchased a new position in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $355,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new stake in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $12,066,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $52,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $33,586,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $212,000. 80.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Exelon

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.