Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) Price Target Cut to $48.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) had its price target reduced by Morgan Stanley from $49.00 to $48.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on EXC. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Exelon from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Exelon from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Exelon from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Exelon from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Exelon from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.30.

Exelon Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EXC opened at $43.42 on Thursday. Exelon has a twelve month low of $34.01 and a twelve month high of $48.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.83 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.43.

Exelon (NASDAQ:EXC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.30 billion. Exelon had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 9.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.68 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Exelon will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exelon Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Exelon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exelon

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Exelon during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Exelon by 46.4% in the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Exelon during the first quarter worth $34,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Exelon during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in Exelon by 78.1% during the fourth 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. 80.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Exelon

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.