Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Stock Price Down 5.7% – Here’s Why

Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) fell 5.7% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $13.07 and last traded at $13.03. 810,184 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 2,789,342 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.81.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BTU has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.63. The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.94.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.11%.

Institutional Trading of Peabody Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Elevate Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,889,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 43,766 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $916,000 after acquiring an additional 5,940 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Peabody Energy by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 327,601 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $6,860,000 after purchasing an additional 7,586 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 79.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 175,424 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $4,693,000 after buying an additional 77,525 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 57,800 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $1,210,000 after acquiring an additional 19,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in coal mining business in the United States, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, India, Brazil, Belgium, Chile, France, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Germany, and internationally. The company operates through Seaborne Thermal, Seaborne Metallurgical, Powder River Basin, Other U.S.