Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Acquires New Stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 3,681 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $225,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Operose Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 435.0% during the third quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Clear Street Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. CNB Bank bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Public Service Enterprise Group stock opened at $65.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $63.84 and a 200-day moving average of $61.92. The firm has a market cap of $32.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $53.71 and a 1-year high of $67.51.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 22.81% and a return on equity of 11.53%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.66 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.65%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $86,562.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 153,721 shares in the company, valued at $9,684,423. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, SVP Richard T. Thigpen sold 4,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.18, for a total value of $308,064.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,122 shares in the company, valued at $1,997,409.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $86,562.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 153,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,684,423. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,948 shares of company stock worth $510,300 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PEG. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Guggenheim cut Public Service Enterprise Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, TheStreet raised Public Service Enterprise Group from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.58.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.