Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Lowers Position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. cut its stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 464,386 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,066 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $26,670,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 121,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,245,000 after acquiring an additional 3,960 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 76.4% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 4,065 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.4% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 133,174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,062,000 after acquiring an additional 5,553 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 0.7% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 45,798 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,117,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 126,964 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,640,000 after acquiring an additional 8,011 shares in the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eversource Energy Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of ES stock opened at $60.98 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $59.94 and its 200 day moving average is $61.89. Eversource Energy has a 52-week low of $54.75 and a 52-week high of $69.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $22.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.7525 dividend. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is 130.30%.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,671 shares in the company, valued at $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ES shares. StockNews.com lowered Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays reduced their price objective on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.45.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

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.