Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Decreases Stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lowered its position in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 59,324 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,826 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $5,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also 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% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 87,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,403,000 after acquiring an additional 18,627 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,244,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. boosted its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 65.3% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 26,867 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,270,000 after purchasing an additional 10,610 shares during the period. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,860,000. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth about $2,565,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PEG opened at $83.32 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $83.53 and a 200 day moving average of $86.01. The company has a market capitalization of $41.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $63.68 and a 1-year high of $95.22. 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 (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s payout ratio is 71.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America cut their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Public Service Enterprise Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $82.50 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Public Service Enterprise Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total value of $117,005.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,245,040.92. The trade was a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

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.