Deutsche Bank analysts downgrade Con Ed shares to ‘sell’

Deutsche Bank lowered its rating on shares of Consolidated Edison from a “hold” to a “sell” Wednesday and put a $60-per-share price target on stock in the utility company.

Shares of the Manhattan-based company, which has a market capitalization of roughly $19 billion, opened at $65.57 Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Deutsche Bank”™s analysts, led by Jonathan Arnold, wrote that they observed several reasons to downgrade the stock, including a review of utility regulations by New York state with goals aimed at encouraging more energy efficiency, more choice for consumers and more distributed generation. The analysts also cited pressure on earnings growth in the coming years due to state restrictions on utility investment returns, as well as the National Transportation Safety Board’s on-going investigation into the March explosion of a building in Harlem that was traced back to Con Edison”™s natural gas distribution system.

The company has a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.37, and shares have traded between $52.29 and $65.29 in 2014.

Consolidated Edison Inc. and its subsidiaries provide gas and electric service to New York City as well as parts of Westchester, Orange, and Rockland counties, northern New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania.