Oak Thistle LLC Buys New Position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 5,727 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $511,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ED. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 868 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 4.7% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.1% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 11,142 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,160,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 0.6% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 24,173 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,517,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.29% of the company's stock.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ED traded up $1.52 on Friday, reaching $93.74. 3,516,795 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,178,654. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.85 and a fifty-two week high of $107.75. The business's 50-day moving average is $93.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.81. 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 $32.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.65, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.38.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.02 billion. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 8.70%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Consolidated Edison from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $103.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank raised Consolidated Edison from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Consolidated Edison from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Edison presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $100.64.

Consolidated Edison Company Profile

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.