Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) Announces $0.60 Quarterly Dividend

Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, January 31st,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of 0.60 per share by the utilities provider on Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th.

Entergy has raised its dividend payment by an average of 5.9% per year over the last three years. Entergy has a dividend payout ratio of 55.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Entergy to earn $3.88 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 61.9%.

Entergy Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of ETR opened at $82.37 on Friday. Entergy has a 1-year low of $48.08 and a 1-year high of $84.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $77.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.07, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Entergy news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 8,268 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.52, for a total value of $616,090.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,444.48. This trade represents a 67.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total value of $450,146.72. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $292,210.88. The trade was a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on ETR shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Entergy from $83.00 to $79.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $58.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Entergy from $69.00 to $82.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Entergy from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Entergy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.81.

Entergy Company Profile

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.