Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) Downgraded to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

POR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Portland General Electric in a research note on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Portland General Electric from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $51.00 target price on Portland General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $51.00.

Portland General Electric Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:POR opened at $52.62 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $6.09 billion, a PE ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $50.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Portland General Electric has a 12-month low of $39.73 and a 12-month high of $54.62.

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.19). Portland General Electric had a net margin of 7.12% and a return on equity of 7.57%. The company had revenue of $879.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $953.24 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.91 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Portland General Electric will post 3.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Juan Diego Gallegos sold 2,750 shares of Portland General Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $133,842.50. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 12,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $590,221.09. This trade represents a 18.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert N. Hoglund purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $48.80 per share, for a total transaction of $97,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $122,927.20. This trade represents a 385.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.52% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Portland General Electric

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in POR. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Portland General Electric in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in Portland General Electric by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 552 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Portland General Electric during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in Portland General Electric by 112.9% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHP Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Portland General Electric in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000.

Portland General Electric Company Profile

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) is an investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Tigard, Oregon, with roots tracing back to the late 19th century. The company generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers across a broad territory in Oregon, primarily encompassing the Portland metropolitan area and surrounding regions.

As one of Oregon’s largest electric utilities, Portland General Electric operates a diverse portfolio of generation assets, including hydroelectric facilities, natural gas–fired plants and renewable energy sources.