Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Cuts Position in Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,205 shares of the company’s stock after selling 851 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Evergy were worth $2,617,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in shares of Evergy by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 260,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,790,000 after buying an additional 19,193 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Evergy by 391.1% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 97,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,030,000 after purchasing an additional 77,398 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Evergy by 13.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 307,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,304,000 after purchasing an additional 35,940 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its stake in shares of Evergy by 60.6% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 44,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,332,000 after purchasing an additional 16,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Evergy by 49.2% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,178,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,414,000 after purchasing an additional 388,625 shares during the last quarter. 87.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Evergy Price Performance

Evergy stock opened at $62.36 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $62.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.64. Evergy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.04 and a 12-month high of $65.47. The stock has a market cap of $14.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.85, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.64.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.07. Evergy had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 8.77%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Evergy, Inc. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Evergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.6675 dividend. This represents a $2.67 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This is a positive change from Evergy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Evergy’s dividend payout ratio is 72.16%.

Insider Transactions at Evergy

In other Evergy news, EVP Kevin E. Bryant sold 48,141 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.93, for a total transaction of $3,029,513.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62.93. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on EVRG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Evergy from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Evergy from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group raised shares of Evergy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Evergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Evergy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.88.

Evergy Company Profile

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.