Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Sells 24,930 Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 324,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 24,930 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.07% of Public Service Enterprise Group worth $27,433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $56,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Public Service Enterprise Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.65.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of PEG opened at $81.57 on Monday. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $64.03 and a 12-month high of $95.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $40.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $83.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.13.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total transaction of $117,005.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares in the company, valued at $12,245,040.92. This represents a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.