Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,650,000 shares, a decrease of 5.8% from the March 15th total of 6,000,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,750,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Consolidated Edison Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE ED traded down $1.90 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $87.42. 2,092,871 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,771,785. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $30.20 billion, a PE ratio of 12.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.36 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $88.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.52. Consolidated Edison has a fifty-two week low of $80.46 and a fifty-two week high of $100.92.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.02. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.41% and a net margin of 17.19%. The firm had revenue of $3.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Consolidated Edison will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 13th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.80%. This is an increase from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.24%.

Institutional Trading of Consolidated Edison

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 140.8% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 36,950 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,361,000 after acquiring an additional 21,604 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 169.9% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 60,314 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,487,000 after buying an additional 37,971 shares during the period. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,551,000. Mariner LLC lifted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 91,702 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,844,000 after buying an additional 18,270 shares during the period. Finally, Comerica Bank bought a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $8,014,000. Institutional investors own 66.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Consolidated Edison from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. KeyCorp raised Consolidated Edison from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $94.00 to $93.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $92.50 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Edison currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $87.96.

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.