Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 49,477 Shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Wells Fargo & Company MN lowered its holdings in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 14.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 294,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 49,477 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN’s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $26,255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ED. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Consolidated Edison in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Consolidated Edison in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Consolidated Edison in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. 66.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ED opened at $109.82 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $103.19 and its 200-day moving average is $98.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.01. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.28 and a 52 week high of $114.87. The company has a market capitalization of $39.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.27.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.63 billion. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 8.62%. Equities research analysts predict that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ED has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Evercore ISI cut Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Consolidated Edison from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.80.

About Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.