DnB Asset Management AS Raises Stock Position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

DnB Asset Management AS increased its position in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 153,137 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,069 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $13,664,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. United Bank purchased a new position in Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter valued at about $227,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 242,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,263,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 11,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Consolidated Edison by 82.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,268,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $132,081,000 after buying an additional 572,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Consolidated Edison by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $580,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ED opened at $108.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $99.56 and a 200-day moving average of $98.51. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.28 and a 52-week high of $109.44.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The business had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.63 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ED has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Consolidated Edison from $110.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.40.

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.