American Century Companies Inc. Sells 75,224 Shares of Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES)

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its holdings in Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,607,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 75,224 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Eversource Energy were worth $264,607,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ES. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Eversource Energy by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 121,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,245,000 after buying an additional 3,960 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 76.4% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,389 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $639,000 after purchasing an additional 4,065 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 4.4% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 133,174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,062,000 after purchasing an additional 5,553 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 0.7% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 45,798 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,117,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its position in Eversource Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 126,964 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,640,000 after purchasing an additional 8,011 shares during the last quarter. 79.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eversource Energy Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE ES opened at $60.98 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $59.94 and its 200 day moving average is $61.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Eversource Energy has a 12 month low of $54.75 and a 12 month high of $69.01. The stock has a market cap of $22.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.60.

Eversource Energy (NYSE:ES) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Eversource Energy had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 6.82%. Research analysts predict that Eversource Energy will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eversource Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.7525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This is a boost from Eversource Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.94%. Eversource Energy’s payout ratio is currently 130.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eversource Energy news, insider Frederica M. Williams sold 3,092 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total value of $192,507.92. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,671 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,411,496.46. The trade was a 12.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Jay S. Buth sold 980 shares of Eversource Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.99, for a total value of $61,730.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 24,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,535,318.26. The trade was a 3.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Eversource Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eversource Energy in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their target price on Eversource Energy from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Eversource Energy from $52.00 to $47.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.45.

Eversource Energy Company Profile

Eversource Energy, a public utility holding company, engages in the energy delivery business. The company operates through Electric Distribution, Electric Transmission, Natural Gas Distribution, and Water Distribution segments. It is involved in the transmission and distribution of electricity; solar power facilities; and distribution of natural gas.