Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED) has been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the fifteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $104.20.

Several analysts recently commented on ED shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Consolidated Edison from $90.00 to $86.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on Consolidated Edison in a research note on Friday, January 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock.

Insider Activity at Consolidated Edison

In related news, Director John F. Killian sold 2,276 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.89, for a total transaction of $220,521.64. Following the sale, the director owned 38,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,745,864.29. This trade represents a 5.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ED. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,636,041 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,532,572,000 after buying an additional 461,108 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Consolidated Edison by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,050,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,417,563,000 after acquiring an additional 63,346 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,796,782 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $979,204,000 after purchasing an additional 566,358 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Consolidated Edison by 121,543.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,960,553 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $599,155,000 after purchasing an additional 5,955,653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Consolidated Edison in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $489,806,000. 66.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Consolidated Edison Price Performance

Shares of ED opened at $111.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $101.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.53. Consolidated Edison has a twelve month low of $94.49 and a twelve month high of $114.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.30 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.38.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be given a $0.8875 dividend. This is an increase from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.44%.

Consolidated Edison Company Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc, commonly known as Con Edison, is an investor-owned energy company that primarily delivers electricity, natural gas and steam to customers in the New York metropolitan area. Its regulated utility operations include the distribution and transmission of electric power, the distribution of natural gas, and the operation of one of the largest district steam systems in the United States, serving commercial, institutional and residential customers in New York City and nearby counties.

The company operates through regulated utility subsidiaries that serve urban and suburban service territories, together with non-utility businesses that develop, own and manage energy infrastructure and clean energy projects.