Pitcairn Co. Purchases 242 Shares of IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA)

Pitcairn Co. lifted its position in shares of IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,043 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the quarter. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in IDACORP were worth $551,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in IDACORP by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 44,313 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $4,568,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of IDACORP by 545.2% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,974 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 12,653 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of IDACORP in the third quarter valued at about $557,000. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of IDACORP by 63.2% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 5,030 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 1,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of IDACORP during the 3rd quarter worth about $359,000. 89.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

IDACORP Stock Performance

IDA opened at $114.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.70. IDACORP, Inc. has a 52-week low of $88.70 and a 52-week high of $120.84. The firm has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s fifty day moving average is $113.59 and its 200-day moving average is $110.68.

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.07. IDACORP had a net margin of 15.83% and a return on equity of 9.23%. The firm had revenue of $398.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $403.21 million. Sell-side analysts expect that IDACORP, Inc. will post 5.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

IDACORP Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were paid a dividend of $0.86 per share. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. IDACORP’s payout ratio is presently 62.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of IDACORP from $119.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded IDACORP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price target on IDACORP from $117.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on IDACORP from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Guggenheim raised IDACORP from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.50.

About IDACORP

IDACORP, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada.