Empirical Asset Management LLC Buys New Shares in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 11,807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $729,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 50.5% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 25,204 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,556,000 after purchasing an additional 8,457 shares during the period. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Eversource Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $654,000. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 27,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,692,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $237,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,299,800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $388,509,000 after acquiring an additional 475,341 shares during the period. 80.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ES has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $54.00 to $62.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Eversource Energy from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eversource Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $66.50.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In other news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total value of $156,326.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,369.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Eversource Energy news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total value of $156,326.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 21,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,245,369.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 6,250 shares of company stock valued at $352,014. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Trading Down 2.2 %

Eversource Energy stock traded down $1.32 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $57.89. 3,736,044 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,353,576. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.64, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.58. Eversource Energy has a fifty-two week low of $52.03 and a fifty-two week high of $81.36.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.02). Eversource Energy had a positive return on equity of 9.92% and a negative net margin of 3.71%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.715 per share. This is an increase from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 4th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.94%. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -226.98%.

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.