Van ECK Associates Corp Has $80.31 Million Stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG - Free Report) by 103.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 950,556 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 483,795 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.19% of Public Service Enterprise Group worth $80,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 27.0% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 87,621 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,403,000 after purchasing an additional 18,627 shares during the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $8,244,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 26,867 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,270,000 after purchasing an additional 10,610 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the third quarter worth approximately $2,860,000. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,565,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 126,791 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,536,332.10. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Kim C. Hanemann sold 956 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.09, for a total value of $86,126.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 70,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,307,290.99. This trade represents a 1.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,712 shares of company stock worth $317,644 over the last 90 days. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Public Service Enterprise Group Price Performance

Public Service Enterprise Group stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $83.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,665,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,227,200. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $58.96 and a fifty-two week high of $95.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.68. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $85.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group increased their price target 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. Barclays downgraded Public Service Enterprise Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company 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.