Howard Capital Management Inc. Buys Shares of 12,962 FirstEnergy Corporation $FE

Howard Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 12,962 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $594,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American National Bank & Trust boosted its position in FirstEnergy by 380.2% during the third quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 187.5% in the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its position in FirstEnergy by 186.4% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FE shares. Barclays lowered their price target on FirstEnergy from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Citigroup started coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $53.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, FirstEnergy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.85.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of FirstEnergy stock opened at $47.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.64. FirstEnergy Corporation has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $48.20. The business has a 50-day moving average of $45.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.90. The company has a market capitalization of $27.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.64.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th will be paid a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.73%.

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.