Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) Short Interest Up 7.3% in January

Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 14,910,000 shares, an increase of 7.3% from the December 31st total of 13,890,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,170,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.9 days.

Consolidated Edison Stock Performance

Shares of Consolidated Edison stock traded down $1.01 on Tuesday, reaching $94.61. 224,161 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,406,938. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.79, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.39. Consolidated Edison has a 1-year low of $85.85 and a 1-year high of $107.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $92.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.14.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Consolidated Edison had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 12.27%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Consolidated Edison will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. This is an increase from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Consolidated Edison from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $103.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Consolidated Edison in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $108.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Consolidated Edison

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Consolidated Edison during the third quarter worth $27,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Consolidated Edison in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Consolidated Edison by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.