Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) Shares Bought by Raymond James & Associates

Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 602,504 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,400 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned approximately 0.28% of Entergy worth $63,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Signature Wealth Management Group acquired a new stake in shares of Entergy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,845,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Entergy by 1.2% in the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 80,715 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,530,000 after buying an additional 936 shares in the last quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA raised its position in shares of Entergy by 4.0% in the first quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 129,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,698,000 after acquiring an additional 4,973 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy during the 1st quarter worth about $3,298,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Entergy by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 511,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $54,071,000 after acquiring an additional 1,992 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ETR traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $108.08. 1,720,555 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,683,860. Entergy Co. has a twelve month low of $87.10 and a twelve month high of $108.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.84, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $101.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.69.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $31.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be given a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 1st. Entergy’s payout ratio is 45.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ETR. KeyCorp upped their price target on Entergy from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays lowered their price target on Entergy from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $117.00 price objective on shares of Entergy in a research note on Monday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $110.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Entergy from $111.00 to $104.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $109.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Marcus V. Brown sold 8,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.84, for a total transaction of $874,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,911 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,019,247.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Marcus V. Brown sold 8,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.84, for a total transaction of $874,140.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,019,247.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $348,433.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,000 shares of company stock worth $1,226,685 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Entergy 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.