Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Sees Large Volume Increase

Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 584,917 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the previous session’s volume of 1,527,630 shares.The stock last traded at $106.53 and had previously closed at $105.89.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Entergy from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Entergy from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Entergy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Entergy from $111.00 to $104.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Entergy from $107.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Entergy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.73.

Entergy Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $22.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $108.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $31.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 17.75%. Entergy’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 1st. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.25%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total transaction of $1,003,284.59. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,166 shares in the company, valued at $235,465.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Entergy news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.23, for a total value of $165,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,479 shares in the company, valued at $273,260.17. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Reginald T. Jackson sold 9,229 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.71, for a total value of $1,003,284.59. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,166 shares in the company, valued at $235,465.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Entergy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $193,000. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Entergy by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,955 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake in Entergy by 38.5% during the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 79,904 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,550,000 after purchasing an additional 22,213 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Entergy by 100.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Entergy by 19.6% during the second quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

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.