FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) Shares Bought by Farmers Trust Co.

Farmers Trust Co. grew its holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,498 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 351 shares during the quarter. Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 201,948 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,729,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 4.1% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 23,189 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $887,000 after acquiring an additional 911 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the second quarter valued at approximately $596,000. PFG Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 16.6% in the second quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 18,918 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $724,000 after acquiring an additional 2,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. 89.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

NYSE:FE opened at $39.81 on Thursday. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 52 week low of $35.41 and a 52 week high of $44.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $40.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.71. The company has a market capitalization of $22.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.96 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.27%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 109.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on FE shares. Argus upgraded FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp lowered their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Seaport Res Ptn cut FirstEnergy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.27.

About FirstEnergy

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.