FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) Receives $48.75 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $48.75.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FE. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday. KeyCorp downgraded shares of FirstEnergy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday.

FirstEnergy Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:FE opened at $46.59 on Monday. FirstEnergy has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $48.20. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $45.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.07. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 11.15% and a net margin of 9.19%.The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.85 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 84,565 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,349 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 418.0% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 270,183 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,878,000 after purchasing an additional 218,020 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 52.7% in the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 42,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,716,000 after purchasing an additional 14,718 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 1,379.5% in the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 114,945 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,628,000 after purchasing an additional 107,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 218.6% in the second quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 62,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,506,000 after purchasing an additional 42,700 shares during the last quarter. 89.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.