Truist Financial Corp Decreases Stake in Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG)

Truist Financial Corp cut its stake in shares of Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) by 4.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,660 shares of the company’s stock after selling 774 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in Evergy were worth $935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC grew its stake in Evergy by 12.3% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 1,705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in Evergy by 1.0% in the first quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 19,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,015,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Evergy by 16.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC raised its position in Evergy by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC now owns 37,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,026,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Evergy by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 15,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $829,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Stock Performance

NYSE EVRG opened at $59.34 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.92. The company has a market cap of $13.64 billion, a PE ratio of 19.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.62. Evergy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.46 and a 1-year high of $62.58.

Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 9th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.32 billion. Evergy had a net margin of 13.12% and a return on equity of 8.50%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.6425 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.33%. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.17%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ann D. Murtlow sold 3,301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.85, for a total transaction of $194,263.85. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,545.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Ann D. Murtlow sold 3,301 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.85, for a total value of $194,263.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,545.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Heather A. Humphrey sold 3,347 shares of Evergy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.80, for a total transaction of $196,803.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 35,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,076,463.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,884 shares of company stock valued at $941,810. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on EVRG shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Evergy from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. UBS Group raised shares of Evergy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Evergy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.00.

About Evergy

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.