Wells Fargo & Company Upgrades Entergy (NYSE:ETR) to Strong-Buy

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on ETR. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Entergy in a report on Thursday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $109.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank set a $105.00 price target on Entergy and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Entergy from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Evercore ISI set a $98.00 target price on shares of Entergy and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $104.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.94.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of Entergy stock opened at $95.31 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. Entergy has a 52 week low of $66.85 and a 52 week high of $98.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $92.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.62.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter. Entergy had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 11.52%. Research analysts forecast that Entergy will post 3.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its position in Entergy by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. raised its holdings in Entergy by 135.7% during the second quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 330 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Entergy during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Entergy by 5,466.7% in the second quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Finally, GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Entergy by 5,733.3% in the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 350 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.