Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $88.45 and last traded at $88.35, with a volume of 1379376 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $87.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on ETR shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Entergy from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Entergy from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Entergy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.46.

Entergy Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $82.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.59.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.22. Entergy had a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 11.43%. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. increased its position in shares of Entergy by 135.7% in the second quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 330 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Entergy in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc purchased a new position in shares of Entergy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Entergy

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.