Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Cut to Sector Weight at KeyCorp

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) was downgraded by KeyCorp from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $144.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Entergy from $137.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Argus raised shares of Entergy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Entergy from $137.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.19.

Entergy Stock Performance

NYSE:ETR opened at $151.34 on Wednesday. Entergy has a 12-month low of $96.15 and a 12-month high of $158.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.45 billion, a PE ratio of 18.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $141.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.74.

Entergy’s stock is scheduled to split on the morning of Friday, December 13th. The 2-1 split was announced on Thursday, October 31st. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the closing bell on Thursday, December 12th.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $2.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. Entergy had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 9.53%. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.27 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Entergy will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Entergy

In other Entergy news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 200 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.00, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $613,431. The trade was a 4.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 7,922 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $1,029,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 34,993 shares in the company, valued at $4,549,090. The trade was a 18.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,506 shares of company stock valued at $2,073,670. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Entergy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 47.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,479,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $693,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,075,776 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 53.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,718,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $754,318,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,611 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 185.5% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,876,672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $200,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219,419 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,926,492 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $741,135,000 after purchasing an additional 763,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 89.2% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,073,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $114,876,000 after purchasing an additional 506,239 shares during the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.