Essex LLC Raises Stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Essex LLC raised its position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 15.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 21,660 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,840 shares during the period. Essex LLC’s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $1,970,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ED. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 215.6% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Level Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Retirement Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 74.8% during the 4th quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.29% of the company’s stock.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

Shares of ED opened at $88.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34, a P/E/G ratio of 8.35 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $88.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.46. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 1 year low of $80.46 and a 1 year high of $100.92.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.70 billion. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 8.41%. Consolidated Edison’s revenue was down 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were paid a $0.83 dividend. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. Consolidated Edison’s payout ratio is currently 46.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $92.50 price objective for the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $94.00 to $93.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. KeyCorp raised shares of Consolidated Edison from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “sector underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $87.96.

Consolidated Edison Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.