Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $27.15 Million Position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its holdings in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 304,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,558 shares during the quarter. Consolidated Edison comprises 0.6% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned approximately 0.09% of Consolidated Edison worth $27,147,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. 66.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

NYSE:ED opened at $107.89 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $96.75 and a 200-day moving average of $98.26. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.16 and a 1 year high of $108.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.30.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s payout ratio is 64.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Consolidated Edison currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.50.

Consolidated Edison Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.