Ausbil Investment Management Ltd Purchases New Holdings in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Ausbil Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 35,455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,714,000. Entergy makes up approximately 1.9% of Ausbil Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Entergy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,038,725 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,408,582,000 after acquiring an additional 104,803 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Entergy by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,506,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $416,883,000 after buying an additional 48,047 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Entergy by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,961,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $400,901,000 after buying an additional 796,316 shares during the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Entergy by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd now owns 3,115,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,254,000 after buying an additional 706,059 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Entergy by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,904,933 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,950,000 after buying an additional 258,806 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In other news, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total transaction of $1,003,284.59. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,465.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total transaction of $1,003,284.59. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,465.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 1,500 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.23, for a total transaction of $165,345.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,479 shares in the company, valued at $273,260.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Stock Down 0.0 %

ETR stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $106.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 48,958 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,518,884. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. Entergy Co. has a 52-week low of $87.10 and a 52-week high of $114.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.70, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $108.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $104.24.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.36). The business had revenue of $31.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 1st. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.24%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Entergy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Entergy from $111.00 to $104.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and set a $109.50 price target (down previously from $117.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Entergy from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $113.73.

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.