Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Rating Lowered to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Sunday.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Peabody Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised Peabody Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Benchmark raised their price objective on Peabody Energy from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Peabody Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.33.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Peabody Energy stock opened at $34.13 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $29.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.90. Peabody Energy has a 12 month low of $9.61 and a 12 month high of $35.99. The company has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a PE ratio of -117.68 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The coal producer reported ($0.58) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by ($0.39). Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 0.83% and a negative return on equity of 0.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $990.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Peabody Energy will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peabody Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 1.0% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,693 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $985,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 33,359 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $452,000 after acquiring an additional 10,401 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Peabody Energy during the first quarter worth $261,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy in the first quarter worth $377,000. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Peabody Energy by 9.0% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 57,531 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 4,727 shares in the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.