Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) Shares Sold by Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 27,088 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $2,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the third quarter valued at $48,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter valued at $59,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 325.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 799 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $66,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PEG. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total transaction of $117,005.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 144,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,245,040.92. This trade represents a 0.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Kim C. Hanemann sold 956 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total value of $86,126.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 70,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,307,290.99. This represents a 1.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,234 shares of company stock worth $722,037 in the last quarter. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Public Service Enterprise Group Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of PEG stock opened at $88.22 on Thursday. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $56.85 and a fifty-two week high of $95.22. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $87.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $84.75. The stock has a market cap of $43.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

Public Service Enterprise Group Profile

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.