IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $108.83.

Several research analysts recently commented on IDA shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on IDACORP from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America raised IDACORP from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $113.00 to $117.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on IDACORP in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $110.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut IDACORP from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho raised IDACORP from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $102.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

IDACORP Stock Performance

Shares of IDACORP stock opened at $118.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $107.00 and its 200-day moving average is $100.68. IDACORP has a one year low of $86.43 and a one year high of $120.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $528.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $524.39 million. IDACORP had a net margin of 15.35% and a return on equity of 9.17%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that IDACORP will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

IDACORP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. This is a boost from IDACORP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. IDACORP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.82%.

Institutional Trading of IDACORP

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clean Energy Transition LLP bought a new position in shares of IDACORP during the second quarter worth approximately $49,103,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of IDACORP by 17.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,389,823 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $246,367,000 after purchasing an additional 359,553 shares during the period. Nuance Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of IDACORP by 19.0% during the second quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 1,114,475 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $103,813,000 after purchasing an additional 178,294 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its stake in shares of IDACORP by 30.8% during the second quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 576,136 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $53,667,000 after purchasing an additional 135,793 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of IDACORP by 5.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,656,697 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $170,789,000 after purchasing an additional 86,642 shares during the period. 89.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About IDACORP

IDACORP, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada.