Kempner Capital Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 64,070 Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG)

Kempner Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 64,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,344,000. Evergy comprises about 1.9% of Kempner Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Evergy by 1.3% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $969,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Evergy by 25.8% during the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 5,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in shares of Evergy by 5.5% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 12,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $863,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Evergy by 28.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 322,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,058,000 after acquiring an additional 71,345 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Evergy by 1,332.5% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 374,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,563,000 after acquiring an additional 347,949 shares during the period. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Evergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $51.00 to $57.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Evergy in a report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Evergy from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Evergy from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Evergy in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $64.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.00.

Evergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EVRG opened at $52.20 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.89 and a 200-day moving average of $50.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.99 billion, a PE ratio of 14.84, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.57. Evergy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.92 and a 12 month high of $63.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.03). Evergy had a return on equity of 8.47% and a net margin of 13.28%. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.6425 per share. This represents a $2.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.82%.

Evergy Company Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.