Nicolet Advisory Services LLC Acquires 179 Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,381 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $201,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PEG. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of PEG opened at $77.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market cap of $38.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $64.03 and a 12 month high of $95.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $82.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.02.

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

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Scotiabank raised 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 research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $82.50 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.88, for a total value of $114,208.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 221,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,372,009.60. This represents a 0.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

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.