Jefferies downgrades Exelon to Hold on legislative pressures

Jefferies downgraded Exelon (EXC) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $50, down from $55. The stock’s valuation discount to peers “feels more entrenched” given Exelon’s Pennsylvania rate case overhang and 2027 rate case filing in Illinois, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Maryland’s legislation pressures the company’s earnings, which is “not fatal but comes at the wrong time,” adds Jefferies. The firm believes the stock’s catalysts are skewed more negative than positive with potential for regulatory ad legislative “contagion” and limited upside to consensus estimates.