Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Lowered to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $30.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. B. Riley Financial lowered Peabody Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered Peabody Energy from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Peabody Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $34.13.

Peabody Energy Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of BTU stock opened at $25.02 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Peabody Energy has a twelve month low of $12.58 and a twelve month high of $41.14. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $31.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.47. The stock has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.27 and a beta of 0.35.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The coal producer reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.43). Peabody Energy had a negative return on equity of 2.80% and a negative net margin of 3.07%.The firm had revenue of $973.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $977.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.27 earnings per share. Peabody Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Peabody Energy will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 19th. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is -66.67%.

Insider Activity at Peabody Energy

In related news, COO Darren Ronald Yeates sold 13,892 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.40, for a total transaction of $505,668.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 113,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,129,216. This trade represents a 10.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 104.3% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 763.4% during the 3rd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Peabody Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Peabody Energy by 258.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,607 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,159 shares in the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation is one of the world’s largest private-sector coal companies, engaged primarily in the production and sale of metallurgical and thermal coal. The company’s operations span surface and underground mines, serving utilities, steel mills and other industrial customers that rely on coal as an essential component in power generation and steelmaking. Peabody’s product portfolio includes high-energy thermal coal for electricity generation and low-volatile metallurgical coal used in steel production, reflecting its diverse end-market reach.

Founded in 1883, Peabody Energy has grown from a regional mining concern into a global energy supplier.