Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Price Target Raised to $72.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) had its price objective raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $72.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded Eversource Energy to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Eversource Energy from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research report on Friday. Mizuho upgraded Eversource Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a buy rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $66.23.

Eversource Energy Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ES traded down $0.74 during trading on Friday, reaching $60.01. 3,447,870 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,016,408. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $52.03 and a 1-year high of $77.97. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $59.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market cap of $21.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -50.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.57.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.69 billion. Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.60% and a positive return on equity of 10.22%. The business’s revenue was down 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.715 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.77%. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is currently -242.37%.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total value of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total value of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eversource Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ES. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Eversource Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 61,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,776,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 49.7% in the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Presima Securities ULC boosted its stake in Eversource Energy by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 13,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $847,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Eversource Energy by 62.6% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.