Welch Group LLC Grows Stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Welch Group LLC lifted its stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 502,903 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,614 shares during the period. Consolidated Edison accounts for approximately 2.0% of Welch Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Welch Group LLC owned about 0.15% of Consolidated Edison worth $44,839,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Consolidated Edison during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Consolidated Edison during the third quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 66.29% of the company’s stock.

Consolidated Edison Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of ED opened at $95.76 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.85 and a twelve month high of $107.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $92.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.14.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.12. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 8.70%. The firm had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ED shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup raised shares of Consolidated Edison from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $103.00 to $116.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.00.

Consolidated Edison Company 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.