QRG Capital Management Inc. Increases Stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 27.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,235 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,507 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $646,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 4,571.4% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 654 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its position in FirstEnergy by 293.0% during the 4th quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 786 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in FirstEnergy by 59.1% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 861 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. 89.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Wolfe Research downgraded FirstEnergy from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. KeyCorp cut their target price on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, FirstEnergy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.33.

FirstEnergy Stock Down 0.7 %

FE opened at $39.32 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.36, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $40.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.70. FirstEnergy Corp. has a twelve month low of $36.81 and a twelve month high of $44.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.53 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. Equities research analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.32%. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

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.