Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Given New $115.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) had its target price increased by Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $115.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an underweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

ETR has been the subject of several other reports. UBS Group raised their target price on Entergy from $143.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Entergy from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Entergy from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Entergy from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a neutral rating and set a $109.50 price objective (down previously from $117.00) on shares of Entergy in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $127.81.

Entergy Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE ETR opened at $129.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $119.42 and a 200-day moving average of $111.31. Entergy has a 12 month low of $87.10 and a 12 month high of $131.03. The company has a market cap of $27.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.01, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.98 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 10.10%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Entergy will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were paid a $1.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.48%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.34%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total value of $388,672.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 19,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total transaction of $2,310,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at $18,140,475.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 50,810 shares of company stock worth $6,140,626. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Entergy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ETR. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Entergy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $125,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Entergy by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 27,145 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,747,000 after buying an additional 1,124 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Entergy by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 25,343 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,565,000 after buying an additional 1,405 shares during the period. Commerce Bank grew its position in Entergy by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 13,102 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,326,000 after buying an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Entergy by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 58,162 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,885,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

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.