National Bank of Canada FI Boosts Holdings in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR)

National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Entergy Co. (NYSE:ETR) by 57.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 350,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 127,989 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.17% of Entergy worth $36,075,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ETR. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Entergy by 1.2% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 38,239 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,537,000 after buying an additional 467 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC raised its stake in Entergy by 7.1% during the third quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 2,513 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 26,021 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,407,000 after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Entergy by 5.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 49,951 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,620,000 after acquiring an additional 2,588 shares during the period. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its position in Entergy by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 6,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on ETR. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Entergy from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 15th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $117.00 target price on shares of Entergy in a report on Monday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Entergy from $110.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Entergy from $111.00 to $104.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $109.45.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 1,500 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.23, for a total transaction of $151,845.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,442 shares in the company, valued at $348,433.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Marcus V. Brown sold 8,500 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.84, for a total transaction of $874,140.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,911 shares in the company, valued at $1,019,247.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.23, for a total transaction of $151,845.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $348,433.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,000 shares of company stock worth $1,226,685. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Price Performance

ETR stock traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $109.00. 677,566 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,419,291. The company has a market capitalization of $23.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.69. Entergy Co. has a 52-week low of $87.10 and a 52-week high of $109.14. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $104.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $31.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. Entergy had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 10.20%. Entergy’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.14 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Entergy Co. will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 1st. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.34%.

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.