FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) Receives $52.83 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $52.8333.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 21st. TD Cowen raised shares of FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $56.00 to $53.00 in a report on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings lowered FirstEnergy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on FirstEnergy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 31st.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

FE opened at $46.77 on Tuesday. FirstEnergy has a 52-week low of $42.87 and a 52-week high of $52.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The company has a market cap of $27.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.20.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.86% and a return on equity of 10.51%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a $0.465 dividend. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstEnergy

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 11,305.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,974,989 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $81,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,673 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 85,247 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,817,000 after purchasing an additional 25,571 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 6,066.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 495,299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,547,000 after purchasing an additional 487,267 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 2nd quarter worth about $9,878,000. Finally, BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth about $15,172,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) is a U.S.-based electric utility holding company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. The company’s primary business is the delivery of electricity through its regulated transmission and distribution utilities, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across parts of the Midwest and Mid‑Atlantic. FirstEnergy’s service territory includes states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and West Virginia, and it operates primarily within the PJM regional transmission organization.

FirstEnergy’s core activities center on owning and operating electric distribution networks and transmission systems, maintaining and upgrading grid infrastructure, managing storm response and restoration, and offering customer programs that include energy efficiency and reliability services.