Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 40.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,381 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Entergy were worth $2,448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETR. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in Entergy by 21.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 550 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in Entergy by 37.7% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 4,183 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 1,146 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Entergy by 55.4% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 14,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,571,000 after acquiring an additional 5,303 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Entergy by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 41,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,397,000 after acquiring an additional 6,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC acquired a new position in Entergy during the 1st quarter worth $291,000. 88.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Entergy Stock Up 0.4 %

ETR stock opened at $149.83 on Wednesday. Entergy Co. has a 52 week low of $96.15 and a 52 week high of $156.85. The company has a market capitalization of $32.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $136.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.08. Entergy had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 9.53%. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.27 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Entergy Co. will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This is an increase from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. Entergy’s payout ratio is presently 58.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 4,134 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.03, for a total value of $616,090.02. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,016 shares in the company, valued at $300,444.48. The trade was a 67.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total transaction of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,173 shares in the company, valued at $613,431. The trade was a 4.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 40,472 shares of company stock worth $5,076,328 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Entergy from $143.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Entergy from $143.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America lowered shares of Entergy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $138.00 to $154.00 in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Entergy from $137.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.42.

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.