The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Decreases Position in Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its stake in Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 727,403 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,353 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.32% of Evergy worth $45,106,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Qsemble Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Evergy by 34.0% in the third quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 34,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,152,000 after buying an additional 8,811 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Evergy by 29.1% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 997,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,806,000 after buying an additional 224,679 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Evergy in the third quarter worth about $32,000. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Evergy in the third quarter worth about $8,713,000. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its position in shares of Evergy by 6.3% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 24,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,518,000 after buying an additional 1,444 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.24% of the company’s stock.

Evergy Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE EVRG opened at $65.00 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $61.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.09. Evergy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.04 and a 52-week high of $65.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.57, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Evergy had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 14.77%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 earnings per share. Evergy’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.6675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.67 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.11%. This is a boost from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EVRG shares. UBS Group raised Evergy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho began coverage on Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Evergy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut their price target on Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.88.

Insider Transactions at Evergy

In other news, SVP Charles A. Caisley sold 9,236 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.63, for a total transaction of $550,742.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 33,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,993,132.75. This represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total value of $3,029,513.13. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1 shares in the company, valued at $62.93. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

About Evergy

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.