Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 11,679 Shares of Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR)

Essex Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in shares of Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) by 53.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,679 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Avangrid were worth $335,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in shares of Avangrid by 3.5% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 9,791 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Financial raised its position in Avangrid by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 13,504 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in Avangrid by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 162,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,906,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in Avangrid by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 70,196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,264,000 after acquiring an additional 577 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in Avangrid by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 23,875 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $774,000 after acquiring an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avangrid Stock Performance

NYSE AGR opened at $36.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.17 billion, a PE ratio of 15.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.58. Avangrid, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.46 and a 52-week high of $41.22. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.80.

Avangrid (NYSE:AGR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.18. Avangrid had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 4.35%. The company had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. Avangrid’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Avangrid, Inc. will post 2.23 EPS for the current year.

Avangrid Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.81%. Avangrid’s payout ratio is presently 76.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AGR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Avangrid from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Avangrid from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott restated a “sell” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Avangrid in a research note on Friday, March 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.75.

Avangrid Profile

Avangrid, Inc, an energy services holding company, engages in the regulated energy transmission and distribution, and renewable energy generation businesses in the United States. The company operates through Networks and Renewables segments. It is involved in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity; and distribution, transportation, and sale of natural gas.