Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) Shares Acquired by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,868 shares of the coal producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,145 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $2,624,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 11,390.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,149 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in Peabody Energy during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Peabody Energy in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 292.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,057 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,533 shares in the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Peabody Energy news, CFO Mark Spurbeck sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.52, for a total value of $295,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,710 shares in the company, valued at $1,939,759.20. This represents a 13.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Shares of BTU opened at $24.08 on Wednesday. Peabody Energy Co. has a one year low of $20.21 and a one year high of $29.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.98.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Peabody Energy had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The company’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is 7.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. B. Riley increased their price objective on Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their target price on Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st.

Peabody Energy Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in coal mining business in the United States, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, India, Brazil, Belgium, Chile, France, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Germany, and internationally. The company operates through Seaborne Thermal, Seaborne Metallurgical, Powder River Basin, Other U.S.