FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) PT Raised to $46.00

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) had its target price hoisted by KeyCorp from $45.00 to $46.00 in a report issued on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on FE. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Bank of America increased their target price on FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $43.60.

FirstEnergy Stock Down 0.6 %

FirstEnergy stock opened at $43.23 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $42.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.93. FirstEnergy has a twelve month low of $32.18 and a twelve month high of $44.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.84, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.47 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 12.12% and a net margin of 6.61%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that FirstEnergy will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 7th were paid a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.93%. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is 97.70%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 37,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,358,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 41.4% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 187,964 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,259,000 after purchasing an additional 54,990 shares in the last quarter. Lumbard & Kellner LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,418,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,335,364 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,572,000 after purchasing an additional 67,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Pacific Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 3,481,258 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,623,000 after buying an additional 45,350 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp., through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in the United States. It operates through Regulated Distribution and Regulated Transmission segments. The company owns and operates coal-fired, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power generating facilities.