Benjamin Edwards Inc. Has $3.45 Million Stock Holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. lessened its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,844 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,024 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $3,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth about $215,074,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 43.2% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 2,426,170 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,763,000 after buying an additional 732,443 shares in the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 23.6% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 2,389,722 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $146,132,000 after buying an additional 455,693 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,331,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $142,584,000 after buying an additional 259,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 315.2% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,206,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $162,590,000 after buying an additional 1,674,827 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, EVP Tamara Louise Linde sold 9,563 shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.54, for a total transaction of $760,641.02. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,610,217.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.69, for a total value of $111,190.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 148,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,014,095.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Tamara Louise Linde sold 9,563 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.54, for a total transaction of $760,641.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,610,217.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 30,068 shares of company stock valued at $2,406,965. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PEG. Guggenheim raised shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Friday, September 13th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.92.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

PEG stock opened at $83.41 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $79.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.46. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $53.71 and a fifty-two week high of $85.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.55 billion, a PE ratio of 23.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.60.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.01). Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 16.12%. The business had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.48%.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

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.