Portland General Electric Company (NYSE:POR) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Shares of Portland General Electric Company (NYSE:POR) have received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $51.00.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on POR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Portland General Electric from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Portland General Electric in a report on Friday, May 15th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Portland General Electric from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $51.00 target price on shares of Portland General Electric in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Portland General Electric

In other news, Director Robert N. Hoglund acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $48.80 per share, for a total transaction of $97,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $122,927.20. This trade represents a 385.36% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joseph R. Trpik, Jr. sold 7,500 shares of Portland General Electric stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.03, for a total value of $367,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,897 shares in the company, valued at $1,563,909.91. This trade represents a 19.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Portland General Electric

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Portland General Electric by 7.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 161,931 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,222,000 after purchasing an additional 11,141 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Portland General Electric by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 61,949 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,763,000 after purchasing an additional 2,717 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Portland General Electric by 465.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 151,134 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,741,000 after purchasing an additional 124,410 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Portland General Electric during the first quarter valued at $271,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Portland General Electric by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 233,640 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,420,000 after buying an additional 13,799 shares in the last quarter.

Portland General Electric News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Portland General Electric this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oregon regulators approved a new rate structure that raises electricity costs for data centers while slightly lowering bills for other customers, which could improve Portland General Electric’s revenue mix and reduce pressure to subsidize large power users. Oregon regulators hike power rates for data centers
• Positive Sentiment: Regulators also approved a 29% rate increase for Oregon data centers in PGE’s service territory, another sign that pricing may become more favorable for the utility’s earnings prospects. Regulators approve PGE’s 29% rate increase for Oregon data centers
• Neutral Sentiment: Portland backed PGE’s plan to cut more than 370 trees in Forest Park to make room for power lines, clearing a major hurdle for the project but also keeping public scrutiny and criticism in the spotlight. Portland backs new agreement clearing way for PGE Forest Park project
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors also saw another local report on the Forest Park agreement, which supports project execution but may carry reputational and permitting risk. Portland approves PGE plan to cut trees in Forest Park for power lines
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Portland General Electric from “hold” to “strong sell,” which could weigh on sentiment around the stock. Portland General Electric was downgraded by Zacks Research

Portland General Electric Stock Performance

NYSE POR opened at $52.31 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $50.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.89. Portland General Electric has a twelve month low of $39.73 and a twelve month high of $54.62.

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $879.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $953.24 million. Portland General Electric had a return on equity of 7.57% and a net margin of 7.12%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Portland General Electric will post 3.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Portland General Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 25th will be paid a $0.5513 dividend. This represents a $2.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 25th. This is an increase from Portland General Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Portland General Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.21%.

About Portland General Electric

Portland General Electric (NYSE:POR) is an investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Tigard, Oregon, with roots tracing back to the late 19th century. The company generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers across a broad territory in Oregon, primarily encompassing the Portland metropolitan area and surrounding regions.

As one of Oregon’s largest electric utilities, Portland General Electric operates a diverse portfolio of generation assets, including hydroelectric facilities, natural gas–fired plants and renewable energy sources.