RWC Asset Management LLP Purchases 1,199,068 Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

RWC Asset Management LLP lifted its position in Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC - Free Report) by 106.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,326,843 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,199,068 shares during the period. Exelon makes up approximately 4.4% of RWC Asset Management LLP's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. RWC Asset Management LLP owned 0.23% of Exelon worth $87,582,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EXC. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in Exelon by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 782 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new stake in Exelon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelon during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Exelon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in shares of Exelon by 119.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 942 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. 80.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exelon Stock Performance

Exelon stock traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $43.84. 6,560,723 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,270,625. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.23. Exelon Co. has a fifty-two week low of $34.01 and a fifty-two week high of $44.32. The stock has a market cap of $44.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 10.68%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Exelon Co. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This is a boost from Exelon's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Exelon's payout ratio is currently 65.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Exelon from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Exelon in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of Exelon from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.13.

Insider Transactions at Exelon

In related news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of Exelon stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at $92,134.47. The trade was a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Exelon Company 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.