Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $19.77 Million Stock Position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 320,316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,036 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.09% of Eversource Energy worth $19,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Eversource Energy by 19.3% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,464,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $259,595,000 after acquiring an additional 723,318 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Eversource Energy by 23.7% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,663,024 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $213,005,000 after acquiring an additional 702,360 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Eversource Energy by 1,551.5% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 708,437 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,196,000 after acquiring an additional 665,540 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Eversource Energy by 11.6% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,824,459 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $339,974,000 after acquiring an additional 605,702 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Eversource Energy by 18.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,590,971 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $208,815,000 after acquiring an additional 559,448 shares during the period. 79.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total value of $156,326.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

ES stock traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $60.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,067,043 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,865,062. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Eversource Energy has a 1 year low of $52.03 and a 1 year high of $77.92. The company has a market capitalization of $21.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -50.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $59.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.18.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.60% and a positive return on equity of 10.22%. The company had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.715 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.70%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -242.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Eversource Energy to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $61.00 to $57.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.23.

About Eversource Energy

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.