FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on FE. TD Cowen upgraded FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $56.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings cut FirstEnergy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on FirstEnergy from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on FirstEnergy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, FirstEnergy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.83.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

FirstEnergy stock opened at $46.77 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.06 billion, a PE ratio of 24.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.45. FirstEnergy has a 52 week low of $42.87 and a 52 week high of $52.34. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.86% and a return on equity of 10.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that FirstEnergy will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.465 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.94%.

Institutional Trading of FirstEnergy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,381 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 3.4% in the first quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 6,839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $346,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 4,677 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in FirstEnergy by 44.4% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in FirstEnergy by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $303,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. 89.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.