Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Grows Stake in Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its position in Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,822,647 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 256,361 shares during the period. Evergy comprises about 1.3% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned approximately 0.79% of Evergy worth $113,022,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its stake in shares of Evergy by 8.0% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 260,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,790,000 after buying an additional 19,193 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Evergy by 66.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 51,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,751,000 after purchasing an additional 20,538 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Evergy by 13.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 307,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,304,000 after purchasing an additional 35,940 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in shares of Evergy by 60.6% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 44,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,332,000 after purchasing an additional 16,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Evergy by 49.2% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,178,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,414,000 after buying an additional 388,625 shares in the last quarter. 87.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ EVRG opened at $62.96 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.02, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64. Evergy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.04 and a twelve month high of $65.47. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.52.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. Evergy’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.6675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This is a positive change from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio is 72.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on EVRG shares. UBS Group upgraded Evergy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Evergy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho assumed coverage on Evergy in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Evergy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Evergy

In related news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of Evergy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total value of $3,029,513.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62.93. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Evergy Company Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.