Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its stake in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 96.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,735 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 630,321 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $1,419,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 50.5% during the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 25,204 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,556,000 after buying an additional 8,457 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 1,682 shares during the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $463,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ES shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America raised shares of Eversource Energy from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $61.00 to $57.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $66.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Penelope M. Conner sold 2,700 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.75, for a total transaction of $158,625.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $603,480. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Eversource Energy news, EVP Penelope M. Conner sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.75, for a total transaction of $158,625.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $603,480. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Gregory B. Butler sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.20, for a total value of $562,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 63,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,586,009.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ES traded up $1.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $62.81. 788,891 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,506,384. Eversource Energy has a 52 week low of $52.03 and a 52 week high of $74.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $58.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $22.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -52.97, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.59.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.60% and a positive return on equity of 10.32%. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.715 per share. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.55%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is currently -242.37%.

Eversource Energy 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.