FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Given New $43.00 Price Target at Bank of America

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) had its price target increased by Bank of America from $42.00 to $43.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an underperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on FE. KeyCorp upped their target price on FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays increased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $43.27.

FirstEnergy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:FE opened at $43.61 on Thursday. FirstEnergy has a 52-week low of $32.18 and a 52-week high of $43.94. The stock has a market cap of $25.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50 day moving average is $40.64 and its 200 day moving average is $39.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.56. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 12.12% and a net margin of 6.61%. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that FirstEnergy will post 2.7 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 7th. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.70%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 77,928,914 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,009,615,000 after buying an additional 9,773,785 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,517,314 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $367,423,000 after buying an additional 218,165 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,930,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $344,908,000 after buying an additional 82,482 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 3,557,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $136,152,000 after buying an additional 69,512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,454,376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $126,637,000 after buying an additional 590,815 shares in the last quarter. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.