Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in Exelon Co. (NASDAQ:EXC - Free Report) by 18.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 179,067 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 27,975 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in Exelon were worth $6,740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its stake in Exelon by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 782 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Exelon during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in Exelon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Exelon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in Exelon by 119.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 942 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 513 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.92% of the company's stock.
Shares of EXC traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $43.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,670,169 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,408,646. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.51. Exelon Co. has a 1-year low of $34.01 and a 1-year high of $45.19.
Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Exelon had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 10.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Exelon Co. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This is a boost from Exelon's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. Exelon's payout ratio is currently 65.31%.
A number of research analysts recently issued reports on EXC shares. Guggenheim upgraded Exelon from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Exelon from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Exelon in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI raised Exelon from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $43.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.13.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on EXC
In other Exelon news, EVP Colette D. Honorable sold 1,463 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.57, for a total transaction of $59,353.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,134.47. This trade represents a 39.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Exelon Corporation, a utility services holding company, engages in the energy distribution and transmission businesses in the United States and Canada. The company is involved in the purchase and regulated retail sale of electricity and natural gas, transmission and distribution of electricity, and distribution of natural gas to retail customers.
Before you consider Exelon, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Exelon wasn't on the list.
While Exelon currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.