Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Purchases New Shares in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI has purchased 3,163 shares of Entergy Corporation, valued at approximately $270,000, indicating strong institutional interest in the utilities provider.
• Wall Street analysts have expressed positive sentiments with several upgrades; KeyCorp set a new price target of $96.00 while maintaining an "overweight" rating.
• Entergy recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, representing an annual yield of 2.7% based on a payout ratio of 59.85%.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new stake in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,163 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Entergy by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in Entergy in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc bought a new stake in Entergy in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Entergy in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Entergy by 188.5% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In other news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 4,463 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.50, for a total transaction of $403,901.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,318 shares of the company's stock, valued at $300,279. This represents a 57.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on ETR shares. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $96.00 price target (up previously from $88.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Entergy from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho set a $97.00 price objective on Entergy and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Entergy from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on Entergy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.07.

Entergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETR opened at $90.44 on Friday. Entergy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $57.65 and a fifty-two week high of $92.40. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $40.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.57.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.14. Entergy had a return on equity of 11.52% and a net margin of 14.35%. The business had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.92 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Entergy's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.85%.

About Entergy

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.

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