Natixis Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 52.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 200,381 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 68,803 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.09% of Entergy worth $21,441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 64.2% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,170,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $440,690,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630,057 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 25.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,961,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $400,901,000 after acquiring an additional 796,316 shares during the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd now owns 3,115,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,254,000 after acquiring an additional 706,059 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 22.5% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,753,248 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $290,963,000 after acquiring an additional 505,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Entergy by 4.2% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,259,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $238,828,000 after acquiring an additional 91,655 shares during the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Scotiabank increased their target price on Entergy from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $109.50 target price (down previously from $117.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Argus raised Entergy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Entergy from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Entergy from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Entergy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.04.

Entergy Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE ETR opened at $122.17 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $113.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Entergy Co. has a 52 week low of $87.10 and a 52 week high of $123.61. The company has a market capitalization of $26.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.16. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 14.75%. The firm had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Entergy Co. will post 7.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total transaction of $72,018.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at $18,092,241.93. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at $18,307,787.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $72,018.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,092,241.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,272 shares of company stock worth $1,781,806. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Entergy Company Profile

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.