Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.20

Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, October 25th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of 1.20 per share by the utilities provider on Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a positive change from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13.

Entergy has increased its dividend payment by an average of 5.1% annually over the last three years. Entergy has a dividend payout ratio of 62.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Entergy to earn $7.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 62.0%.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of ETR stock opened at $150.35 on Tuesday. Entergy has a 1-year low of $94.85 and a 1-year high of $156.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The company has a market capitalization of $32.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $132.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.02.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion during 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $3.27 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Entergy will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Entergy from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Entergy from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays boosted their price target on Entergy from $137.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Entergy from $137.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $150.96.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 19,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total transaction of $2,310,720.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at $18,140,475.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Entergy news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 19,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total value of $2,310,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,140,475.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. 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. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Company Profile

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.