Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) Plans $0.60 Quarterly Dividend

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 17th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of 0.60 per share by the utilities provider on Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th.

Public Service Enterprise Group has increased its dividend payment by an average of 5.2% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 13 years. Public Service Enterprise Group has a dividend payout ratio of 56.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Public Service Enterprise Group to earn $3.97 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.28 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 57.4%.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of PEG traded up $0.75 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $65.03. The stock had a trading volume of 2,140,737 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,856,657. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.42 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $63.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.80. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 12 month low of $53.71 and a 12 month high of $67.51.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 11.53% and a net margin of 22.81%. Public Service Enterprise Group's quarterly revenue was down 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.66 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $86,562.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 153,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,684,423. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $86,562.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 153,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,684,423. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Richard T. Thigpen sold 4,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.18, for a total value of $308,064.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,122 shares in the company, valued at $1,997,409.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,948 shares of company stock worth $510,300. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Public Service Enterprise Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Clear Street Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 270.3% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 685 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 100.5% during the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 802 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the 1st quarter worth about $82,000. 73.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.58.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.