Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Boosts Stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,577 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $1,067,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 104.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.45.

Insider Transactions at Eversource Energy

In other news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the 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 directly owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Stock Down 0.5 %

ES opened at $61.57 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $59.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The company has a market cap of $22.60 billion, a PE ratio of 26.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. Eversource Energy has a 52 week low of $54.75 and a 52 week high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.7525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This is an increase from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.30%.

Eversource Energy 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.