Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Upgraded to “Buy” at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) was upgraded by equities researchers at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Thursday,Finviz reports. The firm presently has a $86.50 price target on the utilities provider’s stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH’s price objective points to a potential upside of 8.90% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ETR. Bank of America lowered shares of Entergy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Entergy from $68.50 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Entergy from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 29th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Entergy from $69.00 to $82.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.81.

Entergy Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of Entergy stock opened at $79.43 on Thursday. Entergy has a 1 year low of $48.08 and a 1 year high of $84.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $34.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $76.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.34.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 9.53%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Entergy will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 8,268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.52, for a total value of $616,090.02. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,032 shares in the company, valued at $300,444.48. This represents a 67.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total transaction of $450,146.72. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,952 shares in the company, valued at $292,210.88. This trade represents a 60.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,756 shares of company stock valued at $1,095,637. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Entergy during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Entergy by 423.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in Entergy in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Entergy during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

About Entergy

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.