Scotiabank Issues Positive Forecast for Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) Stock Price

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) had its price objective hoisted by Scotiabank from $73.00 to $86.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on PEG. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $98.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Public Service Enterprise Group in a research report on Friday, September 13th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.17.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group stock opened at $85.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group has a 12 month low of $56.85 and a 12 month high of $95.22.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.44 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Public Service Enterprise Group will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Tamara Louise Linde sold 9,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.61, for a total value of $866,594.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 48,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,385,252.17. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.20, for a total value of $124,295.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 147,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,305,762.80. The trade was a 0.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 17,798 shares of company stock worth $1,595,921 over the last 90 days. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Public Service Enterprise Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new position in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $10,137,000. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 11.8% during the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 14,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,249,000 after buying an additional 1,476 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,637,882 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $235,194,000 after acquiring an additional 147,903 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 16,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,455,000 after acquiring an additional 3,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 30.5% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 10,189 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,384 shares during the period. 73.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Public Service Enterprise Group

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.