Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) Shares Sold by HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC cut its stake in Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) by 21.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 305,528 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83,887 shares during the quarter. Evergy makes up 2.2% of HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC owned 0.13% of Evergy worth $18,946,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EVRG. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Evergy by 6,854.6% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,539,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,443,000 after acquiring an additional 2,502,493 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Evergy during the second quarter worth approximately $112,464,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 7,234.3% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 1,300,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,613,000 after buying an additional 1,282,275 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 131.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,004,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,294,000 after buying an additional 1,138,138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 38.6% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,683,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,026,374 shares in the last quarter. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of EVRG stock opened at $63.61 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $14.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.19, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.29. Evergy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.04 and a 1-year high of $65.47.

Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.07. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.6675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.20%. This is an increase from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62.93. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EVRG. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho began coverage on Evergy in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Evergy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised shares of Evergy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.88.

About Evergy

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.