Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Given New $162.00 Price Target at KeyCorp

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) had its price objective raised by KeyCorp from $143.00 to $162.00 in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on ETR. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Entergy from $131.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Entergy from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Argus raised Entergy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Entergy from $138.00 to $137.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.96.

Entergy Stock Down 6.5 %

Shares of NYSE:ETR traded down $9.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $144.79. 3,871,509 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,598,875. Entergy has a 1-year low of $94.85 and a 1-year high of $156.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $129.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $117.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $30.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.74.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 10.10%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.27 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Entergy will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. This is a boost from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. Entergy’s payout ratio is 58.47%.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In other news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 5,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $619,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,117 shares in the company, valued at approximately $614,040. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 11,472 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.16, for a total value of $1,321,115.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,363,182.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 5,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $619,920.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,117 shares in the company, valued at approximately $614,040. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 50,810 shares of company stock worth $6,140,626. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in Entergy by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 795 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Entergy by 1.5% in the third quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 5,971 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $786,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Entergy by 2.3% during the second 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 grew its position in Entergy by 3.7% during the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. grew 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 worth $245,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.