Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 30,089 Shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) by 114.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 56,274 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 30,089 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Entergy were worth $4,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Entergy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Entergy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Entergy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. NBT Bank N A NY grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 340 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortis Group Advisors LLC increased its position in 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 buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total transaction of $450,146.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $292,210.88. This represents a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Entergy Stock Performance

ETR stock opened at $82.70 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $81.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.87. The company has a market cap of $35.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.68. Entergy Corporation has a 1 year low of $50.19 and a 1 year high of $88.38. 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 (NYSE:ETR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on ETR shares. StockNews.com raised Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Entergy from $165.00 to $82.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Entergy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.11.

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.