Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) is Hamlin Capital Management LLC's 2nd Largest Position

Hamlin Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,412,217 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 15,119 shares during the quarter. Public Service Enterprise Group accounts for about 5.0% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Hamlin Capital Management LLC owned about 0.48% of Public Service Enterprise Group worth $203,808,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PEG. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,976 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 8,343 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $705,000 after acquiring an additional 507 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 8,842 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 682 shares during the period. My Legacy Advisors LLC boosted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. My Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 8,403 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $725,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bowman & Co S.C. grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Bowman & Co S.C. now owns 11,362 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $960,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $83.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $98.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.17.

Public Service Enterprise Group Trading Up 2.6 %

NYSE PEG traded up $2.33 on Tuesday, reaching $90.47. 2,395,878 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,038,777. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $56.85 and a fifty-two week high of $95.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.65. The business's fifty day moving average price is $87.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.03. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The firm had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.85 earnings per share. Public Service Enterprise Group's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. Public Service Enterprise Group's payout ratio is 58.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Richard T. Thigpen sold 5,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.95, for a total value of $518,905.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,271,660.55. This trade represents a 18.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total transaction of $117,005.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,245,040.92. The trade was a 0.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,234 shares of company stock valued at $722,037 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Public Service Enterprise Group Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.