Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $44.13.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on EXC. Guggenheim upgraded Exelon from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays raised their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Exelon from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $43.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th.

Exelon Stock Performance

Shares of EXC stock opened at $44.20 on Monday. Exelon has a 12 month low of $34.01 and a 12 month high of $44.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.60 EPS. Analysts forecast that Exelon will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Exelon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exelon

In other Exelon news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total value of $59,353.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Exelon in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Exelon during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in shares of Exelon by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 782 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exelon in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Exelon during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.92% of the company’s stock.

Exelon Company Profile

Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.