Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 6,832 Shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 6.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,832 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $3,615,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FE. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,150.9% in the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in FirstEnergy by 1,138.9% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 615 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in FirstEnergy in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP bought a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:FE opened at $44.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market cap of $25.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.50. FirstEnergy Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $32.18 and a fifty-two week high of $44.97. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.57.

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

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $0.425 per share. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 7th. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is currently 97.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FE. Scotiabank increased their target price on FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $43.50.

FirstEnergy Profile

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.