Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) Shares Purchased by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 165 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ED. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Consolidated Edison during the 3rd quarter worth $776,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Consolidated Edison by 10,302.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 24,446 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,546,000 after acquiring an additional 24,211 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Consolidated Edison by 4.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,145,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $223,373,000 after acquiring an additional 82,985 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 143,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,772,000 after purchasing an additional 3,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 102.7% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 430,279 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,394,000 after purchasing an additional 217,981 shares during the last quarter. 66.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Price Performance

ED opened at $94.57 on Thursday. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.85 and a 1 year high of $107.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.76 billion, a PE ratio of 17.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.39.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Consolidated Edison’s payout ratio is currently 62.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ED shares. Barclays cut their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Scotiabank raised shares of Consolidated Edison from a “sector underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.00.

Consolidated Edison Company Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.