Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) Shares Acquired by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 41.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 944 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PEG. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 4,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 5,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $440,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA raised its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 9,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $842,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. lifted its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 4,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $416,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 35,384 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,990,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.83.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 0.3 %

PEG stock opened at $81.68 on Thursday. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a one year low of $63.31 and a one year high of $95.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $84.54 and a 200-day moving average of $86.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.70 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 19.48%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total value of $114,511.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,536,332.10. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Public Service Enterprise Group Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.