Scharf Investments LLC Grows Position in Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR)

Scharf Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) by 13.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 79,212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,139 shares during the quarter. Portland General Electric comprises approximately 0.1% of Scharf Investments LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Scharf Investments LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Portland General Electric worth $3,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of POR. Leeward Investments LLC MA grew its stake in Portland General Electric by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 546,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $23,694,000 after buying an additional 79,052 shares during the period. Comerica Bank boosted its position in Portland General Electric by 309.9% during the 3rd quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 174,052 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,046,000 after purchasing an additional 131,589 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in Portland General Electric by 205.1% in the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 78,278 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,338,000 after purchasing an additional 52,620 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in Portland General Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,644,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Portland General Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $1,788,000.

Portland General Electric Stock Performance

Portland General Electric stock traded up $0.54 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $43.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,102,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 957,099. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. Portland General Electric has a twelve month low of $38.01 and a twelve month high of $49.72. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $43.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.28. The firm has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.34 and a beta of 0.58.

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.12. Portland General Electric had a net margin of 8.51% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The company had revenue of $929.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $828.94 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Portland General Electric will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Portland General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 24th. This is a positive change from Portland General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.65%. Portland General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 76.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on POR shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Portland General Electric from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Portland General Electric from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Portland General Electric has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.00.

Insider Transactions at Portland General Electric

In related news, COO Benjamin Felton sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.60, for a total transaction of $142,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 31,950 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,297,170. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, COO Benjamin Felton sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.60, for a total transaction of $142,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 31,950 shares in the company, valued at $1,297,170. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Maria Angelica Espinosa sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.30, for a total transaction of $88,600.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,600.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 6,463 shares of company stock worth $274,064. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Portland General Electric

Portland General Electric Company, an integrated electric utility company, engages in the generation, wholesale purchase, transmission, distribution, and retail sale of electricity in the state of Oregon. It operates six thermal plants, three wind farms, and seven hydroelectric facilities. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned an electric transmission system consisting of 1,254 circuit miles, including 287 circuit miles of 500 kilovolt line, 413 circuit miles of 230 kilovolt line, and 554 miles of 115 kilovolt line; and served 934 thousand retail customers in 51 cities.