UBS Group Issues Positive Forecast for Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) Stock Price

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) had its price target raised by UBS Group from $45.00 to $47.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Exelon from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $43.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Exelon in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Exelon currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.13.

Exelon Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of EXC stock opened at $43.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock has a market cap of $44.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.95. Exelon has a 1 year low of $34.01 and a 1 year high of $45.20.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 10.68%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Exelon will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.40 dividend. This is a boost from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.65%. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.31%.

Insider Activity at Exelon

In related news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelon

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXC. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Exelon by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Exelon by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $689,000 after buying an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its stake in Exelon by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 11,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Exelon by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 315,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,812,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its stake in Exelon by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 49,290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,999,000 after buying an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.92% of the company’s stock.

About Exelon

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.