Welch Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Welch Group LLC boosted its stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED - Free Report) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 513,393 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,490 shares during the quarter. Consolidated Edison comprises approximately 2.5% of Welch Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Welch Group LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Consolidated Edison worth $55,842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 4.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,145,128 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $223,373,000 after purchasing an additional 82,985 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 4,863 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $434,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 78.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,361 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 3,666 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Consolidated Edison by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 46,095 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,113,000 after purchasing an additional 4,588 shares during the period. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,188 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $731,000 after buying an additional 401 shares during the period. 66.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Stock Up 1.2%

ED stock traded up $1.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $104.65. 6,398,492 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,286,243. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.28 and a 1 year high of $114.87. The firm's 50 day moving average is $107.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.17. The stock has a market cap of $37.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.05). Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The firm had revenue of $4.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.21 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.15 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Consolidated Edison's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ED has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Consolidated Edison from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group upped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $110.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $96.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.27.

Consolidated Edison Profile

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.