Delta Financial Group Inc. Buys New Stake in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

Delta Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $412,000.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 4.7% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 11,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 2.4% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $580,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 10,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $925,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

Consolidated Edison stock opened at $98.27 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $34.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.39. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.85 and a 12 month high of $107.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $92.09 and its 200-day moving average is $97.96.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is an increase from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ED has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “sector underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI cut Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays dropped their target price on Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Edison currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.70.

Consolidated Edison Company Profile

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.