OFI Invest Asset Management Buys New Shares in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 478 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $39,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $54,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group in the 4th quarter worth $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PEG opened at $78.50 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.60. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $63.31 and a 12 month high of $95.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $84.16 and its 200 day moving average is $86.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. Research analysts predict that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. This is an increase from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays cut shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America decreased 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, March 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.83.

Insider Activity at Public Service Enterprise Group

In other Public Service Enterprise Group news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.91, for a total value of $117,005.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,212 shares in the company, valued at $12,245,040.92. This represents a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by 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.