Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on PEG. Barclays lowered their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Public Service Enterprise Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $82.50 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Public Service Enterprise Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.35.

Public Service Enterprise Group Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:PEG traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $83.33. 2,125,183 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,724,734. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 52 week low of $65.26 and a 52 week high of $95.22. The firm's 50 day moving average is $81.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. Public Service Enterprise Group's quarterly revenue was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.63 dividend. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. Public Service Enterprise Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Public Service Enterprise Group

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.88, for a total transaction of $114,208.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 221,670 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,372,009.60. This trade represents a 0.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PEG. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 27.0% in the 4th 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 period. Cullen Investment Group LTD. raised its position in shares of 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 worth $2,270,000 after acquiring an additional 10,610 shares during the period. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,860,000. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,565,000. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 108,025 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,127,000 after purchasing an additional 6,545 shares during the period. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

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.