Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Has $40.37 Million Stake in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. decreased its position in shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 18.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 654,056 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 151,677 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $40,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ES. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eversource Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Eversource Energy by 130.9% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 642 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Eversource Energy by 40.4% in the third quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Eversource Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.99% of the company’s stock.

Eversource Energy Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE ES opened at $59.46 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.95. Eversource Energy has a fifty-two week low of $52.03 and a fifty-two week high of $78.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.85 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.02). Eversource Energy had a negative net margin of 3.71% and a positive return on equity of 9.92%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Eversource Energy will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 5th were issued a $0.715 dividend. This is a positive change from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 4th. Eversource Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -226.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eversource Energy news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total value of $47,774.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Eversource Energy news, insider Linda Dorcena Forry sold 822 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.12, for a total value of $47,774.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,485 shares in the company, valued at $609,388.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 2,714 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.60, for a total transaction of $156,326.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 21,621 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,369.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Eversource Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $66.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Argus decreased their price objective on shares of Eversource Energy from $85.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Eversource Energy in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Eversource Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $65.85.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.