Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Acquires 246,200 Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC - Free Report) by 35.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 938,832 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 246,200 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.09% of Exelon worth $35,338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelon during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its position in Exelon by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 782 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in Exelon in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Exelon during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in Exelon by 119.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 942 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 513 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.92% of the company's stock.

Exelon Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Exelon stock traded down $0.31 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $46.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,714,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,253,729. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.14. Exelon Co. has a 52 week low of $34.01 and a 52 week high of $48.11. The stock has a market cap of $46.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 10.68%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Exelon Co. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Exelon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.31%.

Insider Activity at Exelon

In other news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total transaction of $59,353.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,271 shares in the company, valued at $92,134.47. The trade was a 39.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Evercore ISI restated an "in-line" rating and issued a $48.00 target price (up previously from $46.00) on shares of Exelon in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Exelon from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim set a $47.00 target price on shares of Exelon and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.67.

About Exelon

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.