Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED) Stock Has Average Target Price of $109.74

Key Points

• Analysts’ consensus is “Reduce”: Of 19 analysts covering Consolidated Edison, six rate it Sell, eight Hold, and five Buy; the average 12-month price target is $109.74.
• The utility beat quarterly estimates, reporting earnings of $2.07 per share versus $2.03 expected and revenue of $4.91 billion versus $4.75 billion expected.
• Consolidated Edison announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8875 per share, equivalent to $3.55 annually and a 2.9% yield.

Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Reduce" by the nineteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $109.74.

ED has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (down from $121.00) on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Consolidated Edison from $105.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Consolidated Edison from $118.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho set a $108.00 price target on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th.

Consolidated Edison Price Performance

NYSE:ED traded up $1.64 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $120.99. The company had a trading volume of 1,955,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,416,144. Consolidated Edison has a 52-week low of $94.96 and a 52-week high of $122.75. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $110.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.73. The company has a market capitalization of $44.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.36, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.04. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.58% and a net margin of 12.70%. The business had revenue of $4.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Consolidated Edison will post 6.10 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be issued a $0.8875 dividend. This represents a $3.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. Consolidated Edison's payout ratio is presently 56.80%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Consolidated Edison

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ED. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Consolidated Edison in the second quarter worth $4,609,491,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Consolidated Edison by 14.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,075,838 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $800,843,000 after buying an additional 910,244 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the second quarter valued at about $749,184,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 7.9% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,847,672 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $536,298,000 after buying an additional 353,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the second quarter valued at about $494,352,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.29% of the company's stock.

Consolidated Edison Company Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc. is an energy holding company whose principal business is delivering electricity, natural gas and steam through regulated utility subsidiaries. Its services include generating, transmitting and distributing energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Its largest subsidiary, Consolidated Edison Company of New York, serves customers in New York City and Westchester County. Orange and Rockland Utilities serves parts of southeastern New York and northern New Jersey.

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