Vest Financial LLC Purchases New Holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Vest Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 970,416 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $60,273,000. Eversource Energy makes up 0.9% of Vest Financial LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Vest Financial LLC owned approximately 0.26% of Eversource Energy at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 19,663 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,129,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 9,090 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $522,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 7,732 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eversource Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Eversource Energy from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a "sector underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eversource Energy has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Penelope M. Conner sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.00, for a total value of $166,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,988 shares in the company, valued at approximately $703,232. This trade represents a 19.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:ES traded up $0.20 on Friday, hitting $65.50. 2,738,511 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,454,709. The stock has a market cap of $24.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.36, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $60.61 and a 200-day moving average of $60.07. Eversource Energy has a fifty-two week low of $52.28 and a fifty-two week high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The company had revenue of $4.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. The firm's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.7525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.60%. Eversource Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 129.74%.

Eversource Energy Profile

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.