Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.72

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 1st, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.715 per share by the utilities provider on Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.64%.

Eversource Energy has raised its dividend by an average of 6.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 26 years. Eversource Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 59.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Eversource Energy to earn $4.79 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.86 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 59.7%.

Eversource Energy Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of ES stock traded up $0.98 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $61.60. 2,087,395 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,889,733. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -48.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.58. Eversource Energy has a 12-month low of $52.03 and a 12-month high of $77.97. The company's 50-day moving average price is $59.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.03.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.02). Eversource Energy had a positive return on equity of 9.92% and a negative net margin of 3.71%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. Eversource Energy's revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In related news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Eversource Energy news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total value of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ES. Barclays cut their price target on Eversource Energy from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $61.00 to $57.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Eversource Energy from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.85.

About Eversource Energy

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.