Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Receives $65.67 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $65.67.

A number of research firms have issued reports on ES. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $58.00 target price (down previously from $69.00) on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eversource Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho increased their price target on Eversource Energy from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Eversource Energy from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Penelope M. Conner sold 2,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.00, for a total transaction of $166,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at $703,232. This represents a 19.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Eversource Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ES. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,961,496 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,792,559,000 after buying an additional 351,780 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Eversource Energy by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,209,804 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,068,901,000 after acquiring an additional 739,448 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Eversource Energy by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,933,838 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $570,500,000 after purchasing an additional 226,972 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Eversource Energy by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,557,213 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $547,550,000 after purchasing an additional 517,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,352,593 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $422,259,000 after purchasing an additional 333,529 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.99% of the company's stock.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ES traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $64.57. 1,471,270 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,489,361. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $62.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.31. Eversource Energy has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 6.63%. The company had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Eversource Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 129.74%.

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.