Motco Sells 57,516 Shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG)

Motco lessened its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) by 95.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,685 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 57,516 shares during the period. Motco’s holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its position in shares of Public Service Enterprise Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 4,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 5,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $440,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 1.3% in the third quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 9,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $842,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Cigna Investments Inc. New grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.5% in the third quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 5,053 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its holdings in Public Service Enterprise Group by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 4,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.34% of the company’s stock.

Public Service Enterprise Group Stock Up 0.5 %

Public Service Enterprise Group stock opened at $81.09 on Friday. Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $61.48 and a 1-year high of $95.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $84.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE:PEG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.01. Public Service Enterprise Group had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Public Service Enterprise Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.63 per share. This is a positive change from Public Service Enterprise Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Public Service Enterprise Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.19%.

Insider Activity at Public Service Enterprise Group

In related news, CEO Ralph A. Larossa sold 1,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.10, for a total transaction of $114,511.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,536,332.10. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on PEG. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $98.00 price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group in a report on Wednesday. Barclays cut shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Public Service Enterprise Group from $73.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.50.

Public Service Enterprise Group Company Profile

Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates in electric and gas utility business in the United States. It operates through PSE&G and PSEG Power segments. The PSE&G segment transmits electricity; distributes electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers; and appliance services and repairs to customers through its service territory, as well as invests in solar generation projects, and energy efficiency and related programs.