Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 1,817,852 Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC - Free Report) by 21.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,763,958 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,817,852 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.67% of Exelon worth $282,055,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Exelon by 666.2% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,583,477 shares of the company's stock worth $124,024,000 after purchasing an additional 3,115,763 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Exelon by 3.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 60,169,219 shares of the company's stock worth $2,439,862,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,259 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Exelon by 18.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,782,549 shares of the company's stock worth $477,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,858,502 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Exelon by 4,103.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,046,630 shares of the company's stock worth $42,441,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021,731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in Exelon by 101.8% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,344,978 shares of the company's stock worth $54,539,000 after purchasing an additional 678,490 shares in the last quarter. 80.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelon Stock Performance

EXC stock traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $36.87. The company had a trading volume of 7,873,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,680,601. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.54. Exelon Co. has a one year low of $33.35 and a one year high of $41.42. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $39.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.86.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.85 billion. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.47% and a net margin of 10.60%. Exelon's revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Exelon Co. will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

Exelon Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.12%. Exelon's dividend payout ratio is 62.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on EXC shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Exelon in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $46.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Exelon from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Exelon from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Exelon from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Exelon from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.42.

Exelon 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.