OFI Invest Asset Management Purchases New Holdings in Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 409 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $35,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Consolidated Edison by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 477,722 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $49,745,000 after acquiring an additional 23,024 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Consolidated Edison in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new position in Consolidated Edison in the 3rd quarter worth about $564,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC grew its stake in Consolidated Edison by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 6,690 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Bank bought a new position in Consolidated Edison in the 3rd quarter worth about $227,000. 66.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Trading Up 2.8 %

NYSE:ED opened at $106.59 on Tuesday. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.16 and a 52 week high of $107.97. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $94.74 and a 200 day moving average of $98.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.34, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.30.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.01. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 11.93% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Consolidated Edison has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.50.

About Consolidated Edison

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.