Advisory Services Network LLC Takes $616,000 Position in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 10,731 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $616,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ES. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Eversource Energy by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 16,470,356 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $945,893,000 after buying an additional 4,585,232 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Eversource Energy during the 4th quarter worth $188,838,000. Amundi increased its position in shares of Eversource Energy by 32.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 6,482,546 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $367,691,000 after purchasing an additional 1,579,818 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Eversource Energy by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,609,716 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,561,936,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387,072 shares during the period. Finally, Magellan Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in Eversource Energy by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 6,474,477 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $371,829,000 after buying an additional 890,514 shares in the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eversource Energy news, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $192,507.92. Following 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $58.00 price target (down previously from $69.00) on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eversource Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eversource Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.78.

Eversource Energy Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE ES traded down $0.74 during trading on Monday, reaching $56.70. The company had a trading volume of 110,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,326,636. The stock has a market cap of $20.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.55, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.58. The company's fifty day moving average price is $60.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Eversource Energy has a 12 month low of $52.28 and a 12 month high of $69.01.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, research analysts expect that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a $0.7525 dividend. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.31%. This is an increase from Eversource Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. Eversource Energy's 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.