Ameriprise Financial Inc. Raises Holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,525 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,995 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $7,494,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ES. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,561,936,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387,072 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Eversource Energy by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 16,470,356 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $945,893,000 after purchasing an additional 4,585,232 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Eversource Energy by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,933,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $570,500,000 after purchasing an additional 226,972 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Eversource Energy by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,557,213 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $547,550,000 after purchasing an additional 517,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,352,593 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $422,259,000 after buying an additional 333,529 shares in the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In related news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eversource Energy Stock Down 2.4%

NYSE:ES opened at $64.01 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $23.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.61. Eversource Energy has a twelve month low of $52.28 and a twelve month high of $69.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.83.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. The company had revenue of $4.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Eversource Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 129.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on ES shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Eversource Energy from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.78.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

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.