Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys 159,272 Shares of Evergy Inc. $EVRG

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Evergy Inc. by 30.2%, owning approximately 687,109 shares worth $47.38 million as of the most recent quarter.
• Evergy reported earnings of $0.82 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and had a revenue of $1.43 billion, slightly below the consensus estimate.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6675 per share, with a payout ratio currently at 73.35% and an annualized dividend yield of 3.7%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Evergy Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG - Free Report) by 30.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 687,109 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 159,272 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.30% of Evergy worth $47,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EVRG. Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Evergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in shares of Evergy in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Evergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Evergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Evergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Stock Up 0.2%

EVRG traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.89. 129,459 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,322,575. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.50. The company's fifty day moving average price is $70.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.16. The company has a market cap of $16.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.48. Evergy Inc. has a one year low of $58.25 and a one year high of $73.97.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.45 billion. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 14.29%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. Evergy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.920-4.120 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Evergy Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

Evergy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.6675 per share. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. Evergy's payout ratio is currently 73.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $78.00 price objective on Evergy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Evergy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Evergy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Evergy from $73.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eight have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Evergy has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.44.

Evergy Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.