Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Korea Electric Power Corporation (NYSE:KEP) shares reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $18.70 and last traded at $19.16, with a volume of 33805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.74.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Korea Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Korea Electric Power in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Korea Electric Power to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Korea Electric Power Price Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $16.93 and a 200-day moving average of $14.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market cap of $22.30 billion, a PE ratio of 4.19, a PEG ratio of 0.06 and a beta of 0.89.

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The utilities provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.03. Korea Electric Power had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 19.00%. The business had revenue of $19.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.17 billion.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Korea Electric Power

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. grew its position in Korea Electric Power by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 12,594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 6.2% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,851 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $168,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 6.8% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Korea Electric Power by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 163,208 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 4.3% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 35,484 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 1,461 shares during the period.

About Korea Electric Power

Korea Electric Power (KEP) is a South Korea–based integrated electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company’s activities span power plant operation and maintenance, grid management, fuel procurement and power trading, as well as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for large-scale power projects. Its asset base includes a mix of thermal, nuclear, hydro and renewable generation capacity, and the company supports system planning and reliability functions for the national electricity network.

In addition to core utility operations, KEP provides a range of technical and consulting services tied to power infrastructure, including plant construction, refurbishment and decommissioning support.