Verity & Verity LLC Grows Stock Holdings in OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE:OGE)

Verity & Verity LLC raised its stake in OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE:OGE – Get Rating) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 375,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,782 shares during the period. OGE Energy comprises 1.9% of Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in OGE Energy were worth $14,836,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its position in OGE Energy by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 272,521 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,778,000 after buying an additional 9,009 shares during the period. Gries Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of OGE Energy by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Gries Financial LLC now owns 68,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,714,000 after purchasing an additional 22,285 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of OGE Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $296,000. Align Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of OGE Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $141,000. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of OGE Energy by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 107,006 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,303 shares during the period. 67.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

OGE Energy Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:OGE opened at $35.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.71. OGE Energy Corp. has a 1-year low of $33.28 and a 1-year high of $42.91. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $37.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

OGE Energy (NYSE:OGE – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $711.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. OGE Energy had a net margin of 19.72% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that OGE Energy Corp. will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

OGE Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 10th will be paid a $0.4141 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 6th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.64%. This is a positive change from OGE Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. OGE Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of OGE Energy to $42.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 14th. Guggenheim lowered shares of OGE Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $39.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Monday, January 23rd. Bank of America lowered shares of OGE Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $41.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, February 24th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of OGE Energy in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group lowered shares of OGE Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $41.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.71.

Insider Transactions at OGE Energy

In other news, Director David E. Rainbolt purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $36.65 per share, with a total value of $183,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $549,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director David L. Hauser purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $35.09 per share, with a total value of $35,090.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,270. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David E. Rainbolt acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $36.65 per share, for a total transaction of $183,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $549,750. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 6,100 shares of company stock worth $221,925 over the last 90 days. 12.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

OGE Energy Company Profile

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OGE Energy Corp. is a holding company with investments in energy and energy service providers, offering physical delivery and related services for electricity in Oklahoma and western Arkansas and natural gas, crude oil and NGLs across the U.S. OGE Energy conducts these activities through two business segments: Electric Utility and Natural Gas Midstream Operations.