Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) Stock Price

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) had its price target increased by Morgan Stanley from $46.00 to $48.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Exelon in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim upgraded Exelon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Exelon from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.63.

Exelon Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXC opened at $44.59 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $41.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.91. Exelon has a fifty-two week low of $34.01 and a fifty-two week high of $45.20. The company has a market cap of $44.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Exelon will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio is 65.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exelon

In other Exelon news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total transaction of $59,353.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exelon

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EXC. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Exelon during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Exelon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its position in Exelon by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Exelon in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Exelon in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 80.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Exelon

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.