Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $61.88.

A number of research analysts recently commented on EVRG shares. UBS Group upgraded Evergy to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Evergy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock.

Insider Activity at Evergy

In other Evergy news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62.93. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 3.26% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Evergy

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Evergy during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Evergy in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Evergy by 47.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 531 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Evergy in the second quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Evergy during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.24% of the company's stock.

Evergy Price Performance

NASDAQ EVRG traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $61.68. The stock had a trading volume of 985,103 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,044,758. Evergy has a twelve month low of $48.04 and a twelve month high of $65.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm's 50 day moving average is $62.33 and its 200 day moving average is $59.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Evergy will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $0.6675 per share. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.33%. This is a positive change from Evergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. Evergy's payout ratio is 72.16%.

Evergy Company Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.