Bard Financial Services Inc. Decreases Stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Bard Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 8.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,855 shares during the quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $1,193,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in Eversource Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Eversource Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the period. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 104.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Penelope M. Conner sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.00, for a total transaction of $166,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $703,232. This trade represents a 19.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ES. Wall Street Zen raised Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $58.00 price target (down from $69.00) on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Eversource Energy from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.78.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ES opened at $65.89 on Wednesday. Eversource Energy has a 1-year low of $52.28 and a 1-year high of $69.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $60.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.63.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. The firm had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 129.74%.

Eversource Energy 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.