Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Price Target Raised to $43.00

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) had its price objective raised by B. Riley Securities from $38.00 to $43.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. B. Riley Securities currently has a buy rating on the coal producer’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings raised Peabody Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Peabody Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Peabody Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Peabody Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.20.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Shares of BTU stock opened at $36.88 on Wednesday. Peabody Energy has a 52 week low of $9.61 and a 52 week high of $39.95. The company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -81.96 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The coal producer reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.10 by ($0.01). Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 1.37% and a negative return on equity of 0.93%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Peabody Energy will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -103.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Scott T. Jarboe sold 2,151 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.26, for a total value of $73,693.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 82,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,819,803.56. The trade was a 2.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Peabody Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its stake in Peabody Energy by 763.4% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 258.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,607 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 104.3% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,024 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Peabody Energy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Peabody Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade and higher price target — B. Riley raised its price target on BTU to $43 and reiterated a “buy” rating, signaling institutional optimism and providing fresh upside justification for investors. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large bullish options activity — Traders bought 21,779 call options (about a 94% increase vs. average), which is a near-term bullish signal and can amplify upward price moves as market-makers hedge. (Source: options flow report)
• Positive Sentiment: Operational update: Centurion longwall ahead of schedule — Company filings and the PR release note Centurion ramping faster than planned and that key operational/financial metrics met or exceeded 2025 guidance, supporting better cash-flow prospects. Peabody Reports Results
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared — The board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.075/share (payable March 10), which can support investor interest and income buyers even though the yield is modest. Dividend Announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 earnings materials / transcripts available — Multiple transcripts and write-ups were published (call transcripts on MSN, Yahoo, Seeking Alpha), useful for investors digging into management commentary and forward guidance. MSN Transcript Yahoo
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results: slight EPS miss and revenue down year-over-year — Peabody reported $0.09 EPS (missed consensus by $0.01) and revenue declined ~9% YoY; net margin and ROE remain slightly negative, which tempers the bullish headlines. Press Release
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade from Zacks — Zacks moved BTU from “hold” to “strong sell,” which may pressure sentiment among retail and some institutional investors. Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation / downgrade commentary — Some analysts/commentators note that after a large rally (roughly 95% over the past year), near-term upside looks less compelling and valuation sits at the higher end of recent ranges, which could cap further gains. Seeking Alpha

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.