Analysts Set National Grid Transco, PLC (NYSE:NGG) Price Target at $80.40

Shares of National Grid Transco, PLC (NYSE:NGG) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $80.40.

Several research firms recently issued reports on NGG. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $80.40 price target for the company. BNP Paribas raised shares of National Grid Transco from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NGG. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of National Grid Transco by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,462,898 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $265,185,000 after acquiring an additional 473,172 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of National Grid Transco by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 537,269 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,925,000 after acquiring an additional 16,409 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of National Grid Transco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $651,000. Savvy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of National Grid Transco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of National Grid Transco by 377.5% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 16,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 13,156 shares during the last quarter. 4.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

National Grid Transco Stock Performance

NYSE:NGG opened at $70.52 on Thursday. National Grid Transco has a 12-month low of $55.82 and a 12-month high of $74.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $71.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.25.

National Grid Transco Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $2.0345 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 470.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. National Grid Transco’s payout ratio is presently 78.27%.

About National Grid Transco

National Grid plc transmits and distributes electricity and gas. It operates through UK Electricity Transmission, UK Electricity Distribution, UK Electricity System Operator, New England, New York, National Grid Ventures, and Other segments. The UK Electricity Transmission segment provides electricity transmission and construction work services in England and Wales.