Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Entergy (NYSE:ETR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

ETR has been the subject of several other research reports. Bank of America downgraded shares of Entergy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $138.00 to $154.00 in a report on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho increased their target price on Entergy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley raised Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Entergy from $146.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Entergy from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $150.96.

Entergy Stock Performance

ETR stock traded up $3.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $148.98. 2,464,641 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,899,604. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $132.34 and its 200 day moving average is $118.56. The stock has a market cap of $31.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.15, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.71. Entergy has a 52-week low of $94.85 and a 52-week high of $156.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. Entergy had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 14.83%. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.27 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Entergy will post 7.21 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.47%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,173 shares in the company, valued at $613,431. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Entergy news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares in the company, valued at $613,431. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total transaction of $72,018.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,092,241.93. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 36,338 shares of company stock valued at $4,460,238 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ETR. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Entergy by 47.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,479,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $693,260,000 after buying an additional 2,075,776 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Entergy by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,170,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $440,690,000 after purchasing an additional 1,630,057 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Entergy by 185.5% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,876,672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $200,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,419 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its holdings in shares of Entergy by 12.4% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,926,492 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $741,135,000 after purchasing an additional 763,834 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 89.2% during the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,073,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $114,876,000 after purchasing an additional 506,239 shares during the period. 88.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Entergy

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.