Forsta AP Fonden Sells 17,100 Shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Forsta AP Fonden reduced its holdings in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 16.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 90,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 17,100 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Entergy were worth $9,641,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital International Investors grew its position 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 valued at $440,690,000 after purchasing an additional 1,630,057 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Entergy in the 4th quarter worth about $127,675,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Entergy in the 1st quarter worth about $92,257,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Entergy by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,961,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $400,901,000 after buying an additional 796,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ClearBridge Investments Ltd increased its position in shares of Entergy by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd now owns 3,115,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,254,000 after buying an additional 706,059 shares during the period. 88.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ETR opened at $127.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $27.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $116.32 and its 200 day moving average is $109.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. Entergy Co. has a 1-year low of $87.10 and a 1-year high of $127.34.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.16. Entergy had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The firm had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.98 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. Entergy’s payout ratio is 45.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on ETR. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Entergy from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Entergy from $100.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Entergy from $116.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Entergy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.04.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total value of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Entergy news, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 11,472 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.16, for a total value of $1,321,115.52. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,363,182.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 42,888 shares of company stock valued at $5,110,766. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Entergy 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.