Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Raises Stock Position in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 49.4% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 21,903 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,247 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Entergy were worth $2,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors raised its position in Entergy by 64.2% during the 1st 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. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings 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 valued at $400,901,000 after acquiring an additional 796,316 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd raised its holdings 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 valued at $315,254,000 after acquiring an additional 706,059 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in 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 period. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in Entergy by 4.2% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Stock Performance

ETR opened at $127.09 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $116.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.85. The company has a market cap of $27.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.73. 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 $127.34.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.16. Entergy had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 10.10%. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were paid 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 presently 45.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Entergy from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Entergy from $100.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on Entergy from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Entergy from $115.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.04.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of Entergy 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $18,307,787.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total value of $388,672.00. Following 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 19,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total transaction of $2,310,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,140,475.85. 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. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

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.