Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $61.88.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on EVRG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group raised Evergy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Barclays cut their price objective on Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Evergy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company.

Evergy Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of EVRG opened at $61.75 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.21. The company has a market cap of $14.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.64. Evergy has a one year low of $48.04 and a one year high of $65.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. Evergy’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Evergy will post 3.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a dividend of $0.6675 per share. This represents a $2.67 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This is an increase from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Evergy’s payout ratio is presently 72.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $62.93. This represents a 100.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Evergy

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EVRG. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Evergy during the second quarter worth $27,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Evergy in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Evergy by 47.1% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Evergy during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Evergy during the second quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.24% of the company’s stock.

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.