Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Hits New 12-Month High on Strong Earnings

Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $143.86 and last traded at $143.69, with a volume of 92028 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $134.40.

The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.08. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 14.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.27 EPS.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Entergy’s payout ratio is 58.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ETR shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on Entergy from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Entergy from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Entergy from $146.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Argus raised shares of Entergy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.96.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In related news, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 7,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $1,029,860.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 34,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,549,090. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 7,922 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $1,029,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 34,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,549,090. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,307,787.26. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,810 shares of company stock valued at $6,140,626 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ETR. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 234,595 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,275,000 after buying an additional 13,882 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Entergy by 55.4% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 14,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,571,000 after purchasing an additional 5,303 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Entergy in the first quarter valued at $1,245,000. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Entergy by 145.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 24,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,551,000 after purchasing an additional 14,293 shares during the period. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Entergy by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 41,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,197 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Trading Down 6.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $30.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.12.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.