Cwm LLC Increases Position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Cwm LLC raised its position in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,544 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $1,355,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FE. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 9,773,785 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 2.3% during the first 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 during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 0.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,930,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $344,908,000 after buying an additional 82,482 shares during the period. First Pacific Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 69,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,725,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $104,288,000 after acquiring an additional 193,540 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE FE opened at $43.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.47 and its 200 day moving average is $40.67. FirstEnergy Corp. has a twelve month low of $34.73 and a twelve month high of $44.97. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.47 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 12.12%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. Research analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.87%. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is 97.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on FE. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Argus raised shares of FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. KeyCorp raised their target price on FirstEnergy from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.82.

FirstEnergy Company 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.