WCM Investment Management LLC Grows Position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

WCM Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR - Free Report) by 324.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,942 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 14,482 shares during the quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC's holdings in Entergy were worth $2,484,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ETR. Bank & Trust Co increased its stake in Entergy by 12.8% in the third quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 795 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC raised its stake in Entergy by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 5,971 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Entergy by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Entergy by 3.7% during the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. lifted its position in Entergy by 5.4% during the third quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 1,858 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Entergy

In related news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $613,431. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 7,922 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $1,029,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 34,993 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,549,090. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $613,431. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,338 shares of company stock worth $4,460,238. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Entergy Stock Performance

NYSE ETR traded down $1.13 on Tuesday, reaching $149.22. 1,539,123 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,611,244. Entergy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $94.85 and a fifty-two week high of $156.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $132.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.02. The firm has a market cap of $31.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.71.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.46 billion. Entergy had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 14.83%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Entergy Co. will post 7.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. This is a boost from Entergy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. Entergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Entergy from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Argus upgraded Entergy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Entergy from $137.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.96.

About Entergy

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.