KBC Group NV Buys 4,588 Shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED)

KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED) by 11.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 46,095 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,588 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Consolidated Edison were worth $4,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ED. Creative Planning raised its holdings in Consolidated Edison by 2.6% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 91,659 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,196,000 after buying an additional 2,358 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in Consolidated Edison by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 15,833 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,416,000 after purchasing an additional 901 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 3,678 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Consolidated Edison by 0.7% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 49,635 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,438,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Consolidated Edison by 8.7% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 95,551 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,544,000 after buying an additional 7,629 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.29% of the company’s stock.

Consolidated Edison Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE ED opened at $93.93 on Friday. Consolidated Edison, Inc. has a 52 week low of $85.85 and a 52 week high of $107.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a market capitalization of $32.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $92.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.06.

Consolidated Edison (NYSE:ED) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $4.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Consolidated Edison had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 8.70%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Consolidated Edison, Inc. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Consolidated Edison Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. This is an increase from Consolidated Edison’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Consolidated Edison’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ED has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Consolidated Edison from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Consolidated Edison from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lowered their price target on Consolidated Edison from $99.00 to $92.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Citigroup raised Consolidated Edison from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $103.00 to $116.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Consolidated Edison in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $108.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Consolidated Edison currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.00.

Consolidated Edison Profile

Consolidated Edison, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses in the United States. It offers electric services to approximately 3.7 million customers in New York City and Westchester County; gas to approximately 1.1 million customers in Manhattan, the Bronx, parts of Queens, and Westchester County; and steam to approximately 1,530 customers in parts of Manhattan.