IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $105.25 and last traded at $105.23, with a volume of 26962 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $104.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on IDA shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on IDACORP from $106.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on IDACORP in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Bank of America started coverage on IDACORP in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on IDACORP from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, IDACORP presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.83.

IDACORP Stock Down 1.1 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $102.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.41, a PEG ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.60.

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The energy company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $451.04 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $420.56 million. IDACORP had a net margin of 15.04% and a return on equity of 9.16%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that IDACORP, Inc. will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

IDACORP Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. This is a positive change from IDACORP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. IDACORP’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.17%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IDACORP

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trust Point Inc. grew its holdings in IDACORP by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 7,374 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. grew its holdings in IDACORP by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 4,332 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in IDACORP by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,523 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its holdings in IDACORP by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 6,411 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $597,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortem Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of IDACORP by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 9,301 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $866,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 89.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About IDACORP

IDACORP, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada.