Magellan Asset Management Ltd Increases Stock Position in Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR)

Magellan Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) by 3.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 162,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,780 shares during the period. Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Avangrid were worth $6,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Avangrid by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,669,811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $319,831,000 after purchasing an additional 72,761 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Avangrid by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 6,075,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $242,272,000 after acquiring an additional 118,195 shares in the last quarter. ATLAS Infrastructure Partners UK Ltd. boosted its holdings in Avangrid by 103.1% during the 1st quarter. ATLAS Infrastructure Partners UK Ltd. now owns 4,533,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $180,789,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300,782 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Avangrid by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,266,881 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $90,403,000 after acquiring an additional 231,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in Avangrid by 1.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,832,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,201,000 after purchasing an additional 32,944 shares during the period. 12.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Avangrid from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, November 3rd. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Avangrid from $39.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 30th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Avangrid from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research note on Monday, August 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.75.

Avangrid Stock Performance

Shares of AGR stock traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $30.79. The stock had a trading volume of 295,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 757,786. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $31.18 and its 200 day moving average is $35.02. Avangrid, Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.46 and a twelve month high of $44.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.55, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Avangrid (NYSE:AGR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.15). Avangrid had a net margin of 6.55% and a return on equity of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.99 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Avangrid, Inc. will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avangrid Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 1st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.72%. Avangrid’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 127.54%.

Avangrid Profile

Avangrid, Inc, an energy services holding company, engages in the regulated energy transmission and distribution, and renewable energy generation businesses in the United States. The company operates in two segments: Networks and Renewables. It is involved in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity; and distribution, transportation, and sale of natural gas.