Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 119,561 Shares of Entergy Corporation $ETR

Key Points

• Franklin Resources trimmed its Entergy stake by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 119,561 shares but still holding 6.92 million shares valued at about $639.6 million.
• Entergy reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $0.86 versus the $0.84 estimate and revenue of $3.19 billion versus $2.89 billion expected. The company also reaffirmed long-term outlook with FY 2026 guidance of 4.25 to 4.45 EPS.
• The utility continues to return cash to shareholders, paying a quarterly dividend of $0.64 per share, or $2.56 annually, for a yield of about 2.4%. Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average target price of $118.58.

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its position in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,919,962 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 119,561 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.55% of Entergy worth $639,612,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ETR. United Community Bank boosted its holdings in Entergy by 806.7% in the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 272 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 119.4% in the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 283 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 150.4% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 323 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 306.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 341 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors bought a new position in shares of Entergy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company's stock.

Entergy Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of Entergy stock opened at $108.09 on Tuesday. Entergy Corporation has a 52-week low of $80.11 and a 52-week high of $118.44. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $112.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $103.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 13.48% and a return on equity of 10.75%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. Entergy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Entergy Corporation will post 4.4 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. Entergy's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In related news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 10,638 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $1,170,180.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 14,182 shares in the company, valued at $1,560,020. This trade represents a 42.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Entergy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Argus upped their target price on Entergy from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $135.00 price target (up from $131.00) on shares of Entergy in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $131.00 price target (up from $114.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Entergy from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $118.58.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation NYSE: ETR is an integrated energy company headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, that generates, transmits and distributes electricity. The company's operations combine regulated utility services with competitive power production, supplying retail electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers while also participating in wholesale energy markets. Entergy's generation fleet includes nuclear, natural gas, hydropower and other resources, and it operates a network of transmission and distribution assets to deliver power to end users.

Entergy conducts its regulated utility business through state-based operating subsidiaries that serve customers across parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and southeast Texas.

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