Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Downgraded to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Entergy (NYSE:ETR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Entergy from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Entergy from $68.50 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. KeyCorp lowered Entergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Entergy from $69.00 to $82.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Entergy from $68.50 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Entergy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.40.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of ETR stock opened at $75.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The company has a market cap of $32.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.71. Entergy has a 12-month low of $48.08 and a 12-month high of $79.04. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.60.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.04. Entergy had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 14.83%. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.64 EPS. Analysts expect that Entergy will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. Entergy’s payout ratio is 58.39%.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In related news, insider Eliecer Viamontes sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.50, for a total value of $29,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,346 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $613,431. The trade was a 4.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total transaction of $450,146.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $292,210.88. This represents a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 30,600 shares of company stock valued at $2,125,497 in the last ninety days. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. &PARTNERS acquired a new position in shares of Entergy during the second quarter valued at approximately $345,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its stake in Entergy by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 22,540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,412,000 after purchasing an additional 2,227 shares during the last quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Entergy by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,262 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in Entergy by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 58,502 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,260,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaStar Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Entergy by 20.8% during the second quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Company Profile

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.