Russell Investments Group Ltd. Purchases 20,434 Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 9.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 240,096 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,434 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $14,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Operose Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 435.0% during the third quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. CNB Bank bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Public Service Enterprise Group

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.55, for a total transaction of $95,561.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,500,172.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.55, for a total transaction of $95,561.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,973 shares in the company, valued at $10,500,172.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Richard T. Thigpen sold 4,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.18, for a total transaction of $308,064.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,997,409.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,322 shares of company stock worth $607,376 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:PEG opened at $70.45 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.52, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.56. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $53.71 and a 12-month high of $70.54. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $65.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.01). Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.39 earnings per share. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue was down 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.66 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEG has been the topic of several research reports. Guggenheim lowered shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $70.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.15.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.