Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,390,000 shares, a growth of 8.1% from the March 15th total of 2,210,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,370,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ETR shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $117.00 price target on shares of Entergy in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Entergy from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Entergy from $110.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Entergy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $109.78.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.23, for a total transaction of $151,845.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $348,433.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Entergy news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 1,500 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.23, for a total value of $151,845.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $348,433.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kimberly Cook-Nelson sold 2,000 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.35, for a total transaction of $200,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,609,312.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,000 shares of company stock worth $1,226,685 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Founders Financial Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy in the 1st quarter valued at $206,000. Fox Hill Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Entergy by 21.6% during the first quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 10,015 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,058,000 after buying an additional 1,777 shares in the last quarter. First Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Entergy by 10.8% during the first quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 20,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,158,000 after buying an additional 1,983 shares in the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Entergy by 46.6% in the first quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,088 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 982 shares during the period. Finally, Ausbil Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Entergy in the first quarter valued at about $3,714,000. 88.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Entergy Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE ETR traded up $2.58 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $103.19. 1,663,444 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,361,824. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The company has a market cap of $22.00 billion, a PE ratio of 9.07, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $102.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $99.96. Entergy has a 12 month low of $87.10 and a 12 month high of $109.85.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.52. The firm had revenue of $2.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.27 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 19.41% and a return on equity of 10.54%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Entergy will post 7.22 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 1st. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.76%.

Entergy Company Profile

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.