Analysts Set Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) Price Target at $85.25

Shares of Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five 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. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $85.25.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ETR shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Entergy from $85.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Entergy from $94.00 to $89.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Entergy from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Entergy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 29th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Entergy from $165.00 to $82.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Entergy Stock Performance

Shares of ETR opened at $80.50 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.72. Entergy has a 1 year low of $51.75 and a 1 year high of $88.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.68 billion, a PE ratio of 33.06, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.56.

Entergy (NYSE:ETR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.03. Entergy had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The business had revenue of $2.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Entergy will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Entergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Entergy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Entergy by 60.0% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 16,077 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,219,000 after purchasing an additional 6,028 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Entergy during the fourth quarter worth about $4,393,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Entergy by 74.3% in the fourth quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 7,959 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 3,393 shares during the last quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC acquired a new position in Entergy in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Entergy by 324.3% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.07% of the company’s stock.

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.