BlackRock Inc. Raises Stock Position in Portland General Electric Company $POR

Key Points

• BlackRock increased its Portland General Electric stake by 7.4% in the second quarter, acquiring 1.29 million additional shares and bringing its total ownership to 18.72 million shares, or approximately 15.92% of the company.
• Portland General Electric missed quarterly expectations, reporting $0.64 in EPS versus $0.65 expected and revenue of $814 million versus $839.75 million anticipated. Shares opened at $49.63, while analysts maintained a consensus “Hold” rating with a $51.25 price target.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5513 per share, equivalent to an annualized $2.21 payout and a 4.4% yield. A director separately sold 1,537 shares, reducing his position by 9.27%.

BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of Portland General Electric Company (NYSE:POR - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,719,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,292,219 shares during the quarter. BlackRock Inc. owned about 15.92% of Portland General Electric worth $970,240,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Portland General Electric by 76.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 552 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Portland General Electric during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in Portland General Electric by 112.9% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Portland General Electric during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Portland General Electric by 272.5% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 719 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 526 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Portland General Electric

In other news, Director Michael A. Lewis sold 1,537 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.83, for a total value of $79,662.71. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $779,782.35. The trade was a 9.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.52% of the company's stock.

Portland General Electric Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of POR opened at $49.63 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $51.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.32. The stock has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.52. Portland General Electric Company has a 12 month low of $41.80 and a 12 month high of $54.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $814.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $839.75 million. Portland General Electric had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 7.27%.The firm's revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Portland General Electric Company will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Portland General Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.5513 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 25th. This represents a $2.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Portland General Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 96.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on POR shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Portland General Electric from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. BMO Capital Markets set a $52.00 target price on shares of Portland General Electric in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised shares of Portland General Electric from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Portland General Electric from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $48.50 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Portland General Electric currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $51.25.

About Portland General Electric

Portland General Electric NYSE: POR is an investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Tigard, Oregon, with roots tracing back to the late 19th century. The company generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers across a broad territory in Oregon, primarily encompassing the Portland metropolitan area and surrounding regions.

As one of Oregon's largest electric utilities, Portland General Electric operates a diverse portfolio of generation assets, including hydroelectric facilities, natural gas–fired plants and renewable energy sources.

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