Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Entergy (NYSE:ETR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Sunday.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ETR. Siebert Williams Shank initiated coverage on Entergy in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $109.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho set a $112.00 price target on Entergy in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (up from $96.00) on shares of Entergy in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Entergy from $113.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, KeyCorp set a $102.00 price target on shares of Entergy and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Entergy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.11.

Entergy Price Performance

Shares of ETR opened at $105.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $47.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.65. Entergy has a 1 year low of $75.57 and a 1 year high of $106.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $96.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.01). Entergy had a net margin of 13.66% and a return on equity of 10.89%. The company had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. Entergy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.250-4.450 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Entergy will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. Entergy’s payout ratio is currently 65.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John C. Dinelli sold 5,372 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.95, for a total value of $558,419.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,454,155.55. This trade represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Aristotle Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Entergy by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 2,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Services raised its stake in shares of Entergy by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Services now owns 2,891 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 1,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 0.8% in the third quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 13,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,348,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Financial LLC increased its holdings in Entergy by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 2,510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Entergy

Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) is an integrated energy company headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, that generates, transmits and distributes electricity. The company’s operations combine regulated utility services with competitive power production, supplying retail electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers while also participating in wholesale energy markets. Entergy’s generation fleet includes nuclear, natural gas, hydropower and other resources, and it operates a network of transmission and distribution assets to deliver power to end users.

Entergy conducts its regulated utility business through state-based operating subsidiaries that serve customers across parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and southeast Texas.