Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on ES. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays decreased their target price 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 decreased their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.45.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

Eversource Energy stock traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.98. The company had a trading volume of 4,539,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,177,493. The company has a market capitalization of $22.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. Eversource Energy has a 12-month low of $54.75 and a 12-month high of $69.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of Eversource Energy 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 owns 22,671 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This trade represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eversource Energy

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,111,430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,829,000 after acquiring an additional 215,064 shares in the last quarter. Tableaux LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth $529,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth $7,023,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH grew its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 35,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,010,000 after acquiring an additional 3,551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth $21,989,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Company 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.