Simmons Bank Increases Stock Holdings in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Simmons Bank boosted its position in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Entergy were worth $2,976,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Entergy during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new position in Entergy during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in Entergy by 423.8% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. American National Bank grew its stake in Entergy by 93.7% during the second quarter. American National Bank now owns 277 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Entergy in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In other news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares in the company, valued at $613,431. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Entergy news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $613,431. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.56, for a total transaction of $398,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 34,993 shares in the company, valued at $4,288,742.08. This trade represents 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 three months. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Price Performance

ETR opened at $149.22 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.33. Entergy Co. has a 52-week low of $94.85 and a 52-week high of $156.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.27 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Entergy Co. will post 7.21 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be given a $1.20 dividend. This is a positive change from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ETR shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Entergy from $137.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America cut Entergy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $138.00 to $154.00 in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Entergy from $119.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.96.

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.