OGE Energy (NYSE:OGE) Sees Large Volume Increase – Time to Buy?

Shares of OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE:OGE) saw strong trading volume on Monday . 2,062,954 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 83% from the previous session’s volume of 1,126,007 shares.The stock last traded at $44.77 and had previously closed at $45.06.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of OGE Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of OGE Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of OGE Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $40.00 to $47.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.67.

OGE Energy Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $43.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $9.01 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.70.

OGE Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th will be given a dividend of $0.4213 per share. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. OGE Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.36%.

Institutional Trading of OGE Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in OGE Energy by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,413,588 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $883,311,000 after buying an additional 203,129 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in OGE Energy by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,836,303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $280,425,000 after acquiring an additional 185,069 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in OGE Energy by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,174,558 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $254,701,000 after acquiring an additional 844,679 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in OGE Energy by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,182,795 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $172,554,000 after purchasing an additional 258,989 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in OGE Energy by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,562,014 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $146,933,000 after purchasing an additional 807,690 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.84% of the company’s stock.

About OGE Energy

OGE Energy Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy services provider in the United States. The company generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric energy. In addition, it provides retail electric service to approximately 896,000 customers, which covers a service area of approximately 30,000 square miles in Oklahoma and western Arkansas; and owns and operates coal-fired, natural gas-fired, wind-powered, and solar-powered generating assets.