Prudential Financial Inc. Purchases 95,649 Shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) by 68.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 235,625 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 95,649 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.05% of Entergy worth $17,865,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Acropolis Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Entergy by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 8,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,163,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Hall Laurie J Trustee lifted its position in shares of Entergy by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee now owns 450 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,224,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. NBT Bank N A NY grew its position in shares of Entergy by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 340 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortis Group Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Entergy by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Stock Performance

NYSE:ETR opened at $83.96 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.48, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a 50 day moving average of $83.30 and a 200 day moving average of $75.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Entergy Corporation has a 1-year low of $50.19 and a 1-year high of $88.38.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.03. Entergy had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The firm had revenue of $2.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Entergy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Entergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Entergy from $79.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Entergy from $85.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.75.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.