Ausbil Investment Management Ltd Sells 18,556 Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Ausbil Investment Management Ltd lowered its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG - Free Report) by 17.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 86,256 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 18,556 shares during the period. Public Service Enterprise Group makes up 4.6% of Ausbil Investment Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $7,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Chapman Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 105.9% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 315 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.34% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Public Service Enterprise Group

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.26, for a total value of $109,220.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 221,093 shares in the company, valued at $17,523,831.18. This represents a 0.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $82.50 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Public Service Enterprise Group has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $89.54.

Public Service Enterprise Group Price Performance

Shares of PEG traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $83.11. 1,982,855 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,809,347. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a one year low of $72.82 and a one year high of $95.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.34 and a 200 day moving average of $82.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.71, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.48.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.43. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 17.01% and a return on equity of 11.80%. The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Public Service Enterprise Group's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. Public Service Enterprise Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.85%.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.