M&G Plc Takes Position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

M&G Plc bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 18,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,647,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ED. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Consolidated Edison by 2,307.7% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Consolidated Edison in the first quarter valued at $33,000. 66.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ED shares. Scotiabank cut their price target on Consolidated Edison from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $97.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Consolidated Edison from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $91.81.

Consolidated Edison Price Performance

Shares of ED stock traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $101.59. The stock had a trading volume of 1,505,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,885,258. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $93.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.57, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.34. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.46 and a 12 month high of $105.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 12.03%. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.61 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.31 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 14th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.72%.

About Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.