IFP Advisors Inc Increases Holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,341 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,171 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $1,465,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PEG. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $57,000. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Public Service Enterprise Group Trading Down 0.4 %

PEG stock opened at $82.92 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $59.67 and a 1-year high of $95.22. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $86.03. The company has a market capitalization of $41.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. This is a boost from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s payout ratio is 71.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on PEG shares. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays cut Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Public Service Enterprise Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 126,791 shares in the company, valued at $10,536,332.10. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Public Service Enterprise Group Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.