Candriam S.C.A. Boosts Stock Holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 23.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 81,140 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,650 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $4,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 99.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Eversource Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Eversource Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 104.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of ES opened at $60.97 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.39, a PEG 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 fifty-two week low of $54.75 and a fifty-two week high of $69.01. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $59.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.26.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.7525 dividend. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.94%. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is presently 130.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.45.

About Eversource Energy

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.