Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $45.13.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Exelon from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Exelon from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st.

Insider Activity at Exelon

In related news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of Exelon stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelon

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Exelon by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,955 shares of the company's stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Exelon by 8.8% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Exelon by 20.8% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 39,459 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 6,789 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of Exelon by 16.9% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 11,511 shares of the company's stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 1,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Exelon by 2.3% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,443 shares of the company's stock worth $626,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. 80.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelon Stock Performance

Shares of Exelon stock traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $43.58. The company had a trading volume of 6,491,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,261,476. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.97. The stock has a market cap of $43.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.79, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. Exelon has a 12-month low of $34.01 and a 12-month high of $45.20.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Exelon will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is a positive change from Exelon's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Exelon's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

Exelon Company Profile

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.