PFG Investments LLC Reduces Holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

PFG Investments LLC reduced its stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,377 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 979 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $2,335,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $445,005,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Public Service Enterprise Group during the 4th quarter worth $376,209,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 604.5% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,004,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $169,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719,614 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in Public Service Enterprise Group by 234.1% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,117,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,900,000 after purchasing an additional 1,483,662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Public Service Enterprise Group by 476.9% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 919,218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $75,652,000 after purchasing an additional 759,873 shares during the period. 73.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PEG shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $101.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays dropped their target price on Public Service Enterprise Group from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Public Service Enterprise Group from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $86.00 to $83.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.54.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.88, for a total value of $114,208.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 221,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,372,009.60. This represents a 0.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE PEG opened at $82.08 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.48. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $72.82 and a 52 week high of $95.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $80.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 17.01% and a return on equity of 11.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.85%.

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.