California Public Employees Retirement System Trims Stock Position in Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its stake in shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,039,023 shares of the company’s stock after selling 101,658 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Exelon were worth $216,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Exelon by 6.1% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 10,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Exelon in the third quarter valued at $200,000. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Exelon by 15.0% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 1,176 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA increased its holdings in Exelon by 33.9% in the third quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 7,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Exelon by 3.9% in the third quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 99,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,774,000 after buying an additional 3,776 shares in the last quarter. 80.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exelon Price Performance

NASDAQ EXC traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $37.79. 748,600 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,597,768. Exelon Co. has a 52-week low of $33.35 and a 52-week high of $43.71. The company has a market capitalization of $37.77 billion, a PE ratio of 16.17, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $36.49 and its 200-day moving average is $37.11.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. Exelon had a net margin of 10.72% and a return on equity of 9.40%. The company had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. Exelon’s revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Exelon Co. will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This is a boost from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Exelon from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Mizuho raised shares of Exelon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $39.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. UBS Group cut shares of Exelon from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $47.00 to $37.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Exelon from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Exelon from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.92.

Exelon Company Profile

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.