Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) Stock Holdings Lifted by Sigma Planning Corp

Sigma Planning Corp lifted its stake in shares of Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Entergy were worth $419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ETR. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Entergy by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 44,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,896,000 after purchasing an additional 6,929 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 20.1% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 38,895 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,119,000 after acquiring an additional 6,505 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Entergy by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,028 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Entergy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,030,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy in the third quarter valued at $51,000. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In other news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $613,431. This represents a 4.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 4,134 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.03, for a total transaction of $616,090.02. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,016 shares in the company, valued at $300,444.48. This trade represents a 67.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,472 shares of company stock worth $5,076,328. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Entergy Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ETR opened at $149.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.97 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.71. Entergy Co. has a 1 year low of $96.15 and a 1 year high of $156.85. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $134.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.71.

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

Entergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is an increase from Entergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.13. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 13th. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Entergy from $119.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley raised Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $116.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $146.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Entergy from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Entergy from $131.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Entergy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.96.

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.