Whittier Trust Co. Boosts Holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Eversource Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,539,895 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,737,990,000 after buying an additional 430,587 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the third quarter worth $808,783,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,933,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $570,500,000 after acquiring an additional 226,972 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 3.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,040,171 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $613,233,000 after acquiring an additional 268,588 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in Eversource Energy by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,019,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $477,647,000 after purchasing an additional 185,381 shares in the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ES has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eversource Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. This trade represents a 12.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total transaction of $61,730.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

Eversource Energy stock opened at $60.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Eversource Energy has a 12 month low of $54.75 and a 12 month high of $69.01. The company has a market cap of $22.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $59.94 and its 200-day moving average is $61.85.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 10.99%. Equities analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.7525 dividend. This is an increase from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.94%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.30%.

About Eversource Energy

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.