Entergy (NYSE:ETR) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $84.46 and last traded at $84.22, with a volume of 217661 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $83.25.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ETR has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Entergy from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Entergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $86.50 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Entergy from $69.00 to $82.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Entergy from $83.00 to $79.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, December 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Entergy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.81.

Entergy Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $78.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $70.56. The company has a market capitalization of $35.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Entergy’s payout ratio is 58.47%.

Insider Transactions at Entergy

In related news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total transaction of $450,146.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $292,210.88. The trade was a 60.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Entergy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ETR. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in Entergy by 21.4% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 986,546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $129,840,000 after purchasing an additional 174,093 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Entergy by 40.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,448,000 after buying an additional 5,381 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Entergy by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 280,262 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,885,000 after acquiring an additional 10,697 shares during the last quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of Entergy by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 97,218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,795,000 after acquiring an additional 9,986 shares during the period. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Entergy by 74.3% during the 4th quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 7,959 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $603,000 after acquiring an additional 3,393 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.