Wealth Alliance Cuts Stock Position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Wealth Alliance reduced its position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,382 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 164 shares during the quarter. Wealth Alliance’s holdings in Entergy were worth $897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ETR. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Entergy by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,170,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $440,690,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630,057 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Entergy during the 4th quarter valued at about $127,675,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Entergy during the 1st quarter valued at about $92,257,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Entergy by 89.2% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,073,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $114,876,000 after acquiring an additional 506,239 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Entergy by 22.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,753,248 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $290,963,000 after acquiring an additional 505,705 shares during the period. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Entergy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ETR opened at $128.61 on Thursday. Entergy Co. has a 52-week low of $87.10 and a 52-week high of $129.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $117.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.50.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.16. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 14.75%. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.34%.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In related news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 5,166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $619,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $614,040. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Entergy news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 5,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $619,920.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,117 shares in the company, valued at approximately $614,040. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 11,472 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.16, for a total value of $1,321,115.52. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,888 shares in the company, valued at $4,363,182.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,888 shares of company stock valued at $5,110,766 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays upgraded Entergy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $115.00 to $138.00 in a report on Tuesday. Argus raised Entergy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Entergy from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Entergy from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.35.

About Entergy

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.