Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Invests $2.40 Million in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 41,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,404,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Eversource Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Eversource Energy by 104.5% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ES shares. Scotiabank reduced their target price 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. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com raised Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eversource Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.45.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ES opened at $61.57 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Eversource Energy has a twelve month low of $54.75 and a twelve month high of $69.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $59.74 and its 200-day moving average is $61.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.66, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a $0.7525 dividend. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 130.30%.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. The trade was a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Eversource Energy

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.