Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $79.07 and last traded at $78.85, with a volume of 1058257 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $77.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ETR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Entergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Entergy from $165.00 to $82.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Entergy from $83.00 to $79.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on Entergy from $72.50 to $82.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.37.

Entergy Trading Up 2.2 %

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $75.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.36. The firm has a market cap of $34.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 9.53%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Entergy Corporation will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $613,431. This represents a 4.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total value of $450,146.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $292,210.88. This trade represents a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,756 shares of company stock worth $1,095,637. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Entergy by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Entergy by 0.8% during the third quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 8,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,163,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 8,087 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,065,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Entergy by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 795 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Entergy by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 5,971 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $786,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

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.