Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday.

PEG has been the topic of several other reports. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PEG opened at $81.59 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group has a fifty-two week low of $63.31 and a fifty-two week high of $95.22.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.54 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,791 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,536,332.10. The trade was a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 27.0% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 87,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,403,000 after buying an additional 18,627 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter worth $8,244,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 65.3% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 26,867 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,270,000 after buying an additional 10,610 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter worth $2,860,000. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI acquired a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth $2,565,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company 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.