Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Shares Acquired by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,387,072 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Eversource Energy worth $2,561,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ES. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 104.5% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

ES stock opened at $59.00 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.66 billion, a PE ratio of 25.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Eversource Energy has a one year low of $54.75 and a one year high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. On average, analysts forecast that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.10%. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 130.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. The trade was a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ES shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price target on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eversource Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.40.

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.