Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Sold by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. reduced its position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 12.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 729,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 107,301 shares during the quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned about 0.20% of Eversource Energy worth $41,898,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in Eversource Energy by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 6,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in Eversource Energy by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Eversource Energy by 38.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 710 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC raised its position in Eversource Energy by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $837,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the period. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on ES. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.40.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

ES stock opened at $60.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. Eversource Energy has a 1 year low of $54.75 and a 1 year high of $69.01. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.67.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. On average, equities analysts predict that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a $0.7525 dividend. This is a boost from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 130.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares in the company, valued at $1,411,496.46. This represents a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.