Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 11,447 Shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR)

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) by 24.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,784 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,447 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Entergy were worth $2,713,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ETR. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Entergy by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,718,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $754,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981,611 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Entergy by 60.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,589,727 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $472,444,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354,355 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Entergy by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 1,607,273 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $121,863,000 after purchasing an additional 787,367 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Entergy by 1,490.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 687,874 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,155,000 after purchasing an additional 644,622 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Entergy by 16,409.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 466,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,424,000 after buying an additional 463,889 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

Entergy Price Performance

Shares of Entergy stock opened at $81.17 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.51. Entergy Corporation has a 12-month low of $48.08 and a 12-month high of $84.26. The firm has a market cap of $34.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.04. Entergy had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 14.83%. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Entergy Corporation will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

Entergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ETR shares. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Entergy from $72.50 to $82.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Entergy from $68.50 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Entergy from $68.50 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Mizuho upped their target price on Entergy from $69.00 to $82.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded shares of Entergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Entergy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Entergy news, insider Deanna D. Rodriguez sold 6,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.94, for a total transaction of $450,146.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $292,210.88. This represents a 60.64 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Haley Fisackerly sold 8,268 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.52, for a total value of $616,090.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,444.48. The trade was a 67.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,756 shares of company stock valued at $1,095,637 over the last quarter. 0.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.