Woodline Partners LP Takes Position in Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG)

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 13,811 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $850,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Evergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. National Pension Service purchased a new stake in Evergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Evergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new stake in Evergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Sandy Spring Bank lifted its stake in Evergy by 5,983.3% in the fourth quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 730 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EVRG traded up $0.19 during trading on Friday, reaching $66.42. The company had a trading volume of 2,941,187 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,979,928. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $67.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.27. Evergy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.10 and a fifty-two week high of $70.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

Evergy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.6675 dividend. This represents a $2.67 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Evergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Evergy from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Evergy from $73.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Evergy in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered Evergy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Evergy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Evergy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.19.

About Evergy

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.