Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases 53,160 Shares of Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR)

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR - Free Report) by 2,612.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 55,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 53,160 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.05% of Portland General Electric worth $2,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Portland General Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $242,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Portland General Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $340,000. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Portland General Electric by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 74,637 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,256,000 after acquiring an additional 12,390 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in shares of Portland General Electric by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 224,460 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,791,000 after acquiring an additional 28,764 shares during the period. Finally, DC Investments Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Portland General Electric by 47.6% in the 4th quarter. DC Investments Management LLC now owns 53,002 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,312,000 after buying an additional 17,093 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Portland General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $46.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut their price target on Portland General Electric from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Portland General Electric from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group upgraded Portland General Electric from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded Portland General Electric from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating and set a $51.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.60.

Portland General Electric Stock Down 0.7%

POR traded down $0.28 during trading on Thursday, hitting $41.69. 97,320 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,019,178. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $42.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Portland General Electric has a 12-month low of $40.05 and a 12-month high of $49.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.57.

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.93 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $928.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $977.02 million. Portland General Electric had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 9.10%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Portland General Electric will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Portland General Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.04%. This is a boost from Portland General Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 24th. Portland General Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 73.94%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Benjamin Felton sold 1,845 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.02, for a total transaction of $79,371.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,646 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,404,430.92. This represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

About Portland General Electric

Portland General Electric Company, an integrated electric utility company, engages in the generation, wholesale purchase, transmission, distribution, and retail sale of electricity in the state of Oregon. It operates six thermal plants, three wind farms, and seven hydroelectric facilities. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned an electric transmission system consisting of 1,254 circuit miles, including 287 circuit miles of 500 kilovolt line, 413 circuit miles of 230 kilovolt line, and 554 miles of 115 kilovolt line; and served 934 thousand retail customers in 51 cities.