Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 3,666 Shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED - Free Report) by 78.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,361 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 3,666 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $746,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.1% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 11,142 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Consolidated Edison by 2.4% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,574 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in Consolidated Edison by 0.6% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 24,173 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,517,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Finally, Cooper Financial Group raised its holdings in Consolidated Edison by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,799 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

Shares of Consolidated Edison stock traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $93.59. 791,924 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,209,965. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $92.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.06. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a one year low of $85.85 and a one year high of $107.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.38.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 12.27%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. This is a positive change from Consolidated Edison's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Consolidated Edison's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ED shares. Scotiabank raised shares of Consolidated Edison from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Citigroup raised Consolidated Edison from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $103.00 to $116.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI lowered Consolidated Edison from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $100.00.

About Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.