Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 33,896 Shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED - Free Report) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 354,451 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 33,896 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.10% of Consolidated Edison worth $32,244,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Consolidated Edison by 2.0% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,949,371 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $761,387,000 after buying an additional 154,945 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Consolidated Edison by 0.5% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 6,201,026 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $530,373,000 after buying an additional 27,850 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Consolidated Edison by 8.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,484,026 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $383,519,000 after buying an additional 340,239 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Consolidated Edison by 1.8% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,221,543 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $361,069,000 after buying an additional 72,915 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Consolidated Edison by 89,231.2% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,145,861 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $395,142,000 after buying an additional 4,141,220 shares in the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ED traded up $2.91 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $90.33. The company had a trading volume of 2,910,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,787,448. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58, a PEG ratio of 8.42 and a beta of 0.35. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $100.92. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $88.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 8.41%. The company had revenue of $3.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Consolidated Edison's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ED shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $94.00 to $93.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. KeyCorp raised shares of Consolidated Edison from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "sector underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $92.50 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $87.96.

About Consolidated Edison

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.