Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Given New $34.50 Price Target at UBS Group

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) had its price target lifted by UBS Group from $34.00 to $34.50 in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the coal producer’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on BTU. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings cut Peabody Energy from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Peabody Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, B. Riley Financial upped their price objective on Peabody Energy from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Peabody Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.38.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

Peabody Energy stock opened at $35.94 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.40. Peabody Energy has a 12-month low of $9.61 and a 12-month high of $39.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $34.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.47. The company has a market capitalization of $4.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -79.86 and a beta of 0.54.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The coal producer reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Peabody Energy had a negative net margin of 1.37% and a negative return on equity of 0.93%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Peabody Energy will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -66.67%.

Insider Transactions at Peabody Energy

In other Peabody Energy news, CAO Scott T. Jarboe sold 2,151 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.26, for a total value of $73,693.26. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 82,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,803.56. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Darren Ronald Yeates sold 13,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.40, for a total value of $505,668.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 113,440 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,129,216. This trade represents a 10.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 104.3% in the second 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 during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 763.4% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 1,159 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

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.