Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases New Holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 11,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $473,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its position in FirstEnergy by 159.2% during the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 635 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. Clear Street Markets LLC grew its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 549.0% during the 4th quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 649 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Certified Advisory Corp purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.34% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

NYSE:FE opened at $36.91 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $37.31 and its 200-day moving average is $38.56. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 52-week low of $34.69 and a 52-week high of $43.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company has a market cap of $21.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.72, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.45.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 3.55% and a return on equity of 12.41%. The company had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.89 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 7th were paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 4th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.23%. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is 197.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $46.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday, July 7th. StockNews.com downgraded FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, August 28th. Barclays started coverage on FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. TheStreet lowered FirstEnergy from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Friday, August 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on FirstEnergy from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, FirstEnergy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.40.

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.