Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Sells 125,671 Shares of Evergy Inc. $EVRG

Key Points

• Duff & Phelps Investment Management trimmed its Evergy stake by 6.5%, selling 125,671 shares and now holds 1,819,402 shares (about 0.79% of the company), making EVRG its 17th-largest position.
• Dividend update: Evergy declared a quarterly dividend of $0.695 (annualized $2.78) with an ex-dividend date of March 10, implying a yield of roughly 3.4% and a payout ratio near 75.8%.
• Analyst and market view: The stock trades around $81 with a market cap near $18.7B and a P/E ~22, and analysts have an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $87.75.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. trimmed its position in Evergy Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG - Free Report) by 6.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,819,402 shares of the company's stock after selling 125,671 shares during the quarter. Evergy accounts for 1.6% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned about 0.79% of Evergy worth $138,311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EVRG. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Evergy by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 979 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Evergy by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,926 shares of the company's stock valued at $603,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its stake in Evergy by 2.4% in the second quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 6,413 shares of the company's stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC increased its stake in Evergy by 22.9% in the third quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 817 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its position in Evergy by 2.9% in the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 6,076 shares of the company's stock worth $472,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.24% of the company's stock.

Evergy Price Performance

Shares of Evergy stock opened at $81.02 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.65. Evergy Inc. has a 1-year low of $61.94 and a 1-year high of $85.23. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $78.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.03.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Saturday, January 31st. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Evergy had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 8.79%. On average, equities analysts predict that Evergy Inc. will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $0.695 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $2.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Evergy's payout ratio is presently 75.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EVRG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group downgraded Evergy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $86.00 to $88.00 in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their target price on Evergy from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Evergy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho set a $82.00 price target on Evergy in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $91.00 price target on shares of Evergy in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Evergy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Evergy news, Director Ann D. Murtlow sold 2,847 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.34, for a total value of $234,421.98. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $190,287.74. The trade was a 55.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Heather A. Humphrey sold 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.61, for a total value of $301,526.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 44,007 shares in the company, valued at $3,635,418.27. The trade was a 7.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Evergy Profile

Evergy, Inc is a regulated electric utility that generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers primarily across Kansas and western Missouri. The company provides core utility services including retail electric delivery, grid operations, customer service and outage restoration, operating under state regulatory frameworks. Evergy serves a mix of urban and rural communities, including portions of the Kansas City metropolitan area and other population centers in its service territory.

The company's business activities span power generation, system planning, transmission and distribution infrastructure, and customer-facing programs such as energy efficiency and demand-side management.

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