JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 1,441,785 Shares of Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED)

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has significantly increased its holdings in Consolidated Edison Inc by 106.9%, owning approximately 2.79 million shares worth about $308.6 million as of the latest quarter.
• Other hedge funds have also boosted their stakes, with Deutsche Bank AG raising its position by 130.6% and GAMMA Investing LLC by a staggering 15,937.5% during the same period.
• The company's latest earnings report revealed an EPS of $0.67, exceeding expectations, while it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, reflecting a yield of 3.3% based on its annualized payout.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED - Free Report) by 106.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,790,876 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 1,441,785 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.77% of Consolidated Edison worth $308,643,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ED. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,117,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,768,319,000 after buying an additional 661,432 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,820,449 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $430,129,000 after buying an additional 271,088 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,207,753 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $375,458,000 after buying an additional 390,708 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 130.6% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,926,814 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $434,266,000 after buying an additional 2,223,959 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,271,594 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $251,216,000 after buying an additional 45,605 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $101.00 target price (down previously from $112.00) on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank raised their price target on Consolidated Edison from $101.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Mizuho raised their price target on Consolidated Edison from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Barclays raised their price target on Consolidated Edison from $101.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Consolidated Edison from $103.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.82.

Consolidated Edison Price Performance

NYSE ED traded down $2.00 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $100.86. The company had a trading volume of 3,098,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,209,880. The company has a market capitalization of $36.38 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $101.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.47. Consolidated Edison Inc has a twelve month low of $87.28 and a twelve month high of $114.87.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.56% and a net margin of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $3.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison Inc will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. Consolidated Edison's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.71%.

About Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.