Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETR. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its position in Entergy by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Entergy in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Entergy by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co lifted its position in Entergy by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 364 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Entergy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In other news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total value of $450,146.72. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,210.88. This represents a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Entergy Price Performance

ETR opened at $81.23 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.40 and a 200-day moving average of $73.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.36, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.68. Entergy Corporation has a 12-month low of $50.19 and a 12-month high of $88.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.03. Entergy had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The business had revenue of $2.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.26 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Entergy Corporation will post 3.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. KeyCorp downgraded Entergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Entergy from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Entergy from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.14.

Entergy Company Profile

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.