UBS Group AG Decreases Stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

UBS Group AG lessened its stake in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 21.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 949,531 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 265,972 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $58,605,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ES. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Bfsg LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 84.0% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 596 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Eversource Energy by 40.4% in the 3rd quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Eversource Energy

In related news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,369.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Eversource Energy news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,245,369.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total transaction of $47,774.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $609,388.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ES has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Eversource Energy in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upgraded Eversource Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Eversource Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Eversource Energy from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eversource Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.86.

Eversource Energy Stock Performance

ES stock opened at $57.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $20.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -48.75, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s 50-day moving average is $59.61 and its 200 day moving average is $58.76. Eversource Energy has a 12-month low of $52.03 and a 12-month high of $74.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.69 billion. Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.60% and a positive return on equity of 10.32%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eversource Energy will post 4.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.715 dividend. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -242.37%.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

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.