Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Increases Stock Position in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) by 100.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,782 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,415 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Entergy were worth $2,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Entergy in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 423.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Entergy in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Entergy Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:ETR opened at $85.26 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $80.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.24. Entergy Corporation has a 12 month low of $49.80 and a 12 month high of $88.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The stock has a market cap of $36.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.72.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 8.90%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Entergy’s payout ratio is 98.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ETR. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $58.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Entergy from $68.50 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Entergy from $72.50 to $82.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Entergy from $85.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Entergy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total value of $450,146.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,952 shares in the company, valued at $292,210.88. This trade represents a 60.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.