Federated Hermes Inc. Lowers Holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Federated Hermes Inc. lowered its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 12.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,715 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 249 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $98,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eversource Energy by 99.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 104.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 589 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eversource Energy Price Performance

NYSE ES opened at $57.38 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $60.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.56. Eversource Energy has a 1 year low of $52.28 and a 1 year high of $69.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $21.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.84, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.58.

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

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a dividend of $0.7525 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This is a boost from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 130.30%.

Insider Activity at Eversource Energy

In other Eversource Energy news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,496.46. This represents a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on ES. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $58.00 price objective (down previously from $69.00) on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their target price on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.78.

Eversource Energy 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.