Merit Financial Group LLC Sells 548 Shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Merit Financial Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 8.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 548 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $354,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank increased its position in Eversource Energy by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 61,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,776,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,955 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,087 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 40.4% during the 3rd quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA now owns 1,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ES opened at $61.04 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $59.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.24. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $52.03 and a 1-year high of $77.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -51.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.60% and a positive return on equity of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.715 per share. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.69%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -242.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ES has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Guggenheim upgraded Eversource Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eversource Energy to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Argus dropped their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $85.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Eversource Energy from $61.00 to $57.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Eversource Energy in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.23.

About Eversource Energy

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.