Soros Fund Management LLC Makes New $7.53 Million Investment in Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC)

Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 200,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,528,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its position in shares of Exelon by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 2,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in shares of Exelon by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 9,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Exelon by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 13,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $495,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its position in shares of Exelon by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 18,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Exelon by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $450,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Exelon

In other Exelon news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. The trade was a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim set a $47.00 target price on shares of Exelon and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $48.00 price objective (up previously from $46.00) on shares of Exelon in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.67.

Exelon Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXC opened at $46.48 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $46.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.97, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. Exelon Co. has a 12-month low of $34.01 and a 12-month high of $48.11.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Exelon Co. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is a boost from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.31%.

About Exelon

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.