Public Sector Pension Investment Board Buys 59,789 Shares of Peabody Energy Corporation $BTU

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU) by 14.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 474,298 shares of the coal producer’s stock after buying an additional 59,789 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $12,578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Peabody Energy by 197.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 581,931 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $16,457,000 after buying an additional 386,470 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy during the third quarter worth about $1,830,000. Steinberganna Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the third quarter worth about $1,555,000. RFG Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the third quarter worth about $772,000. Finally, Gate City Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Peabody Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,645,000. 87.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Scott T. Jarboe sold 2,151 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief accounting officer owned 82,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,819,803.56. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Darren Ronald Yeates sold 13,892 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

BTU opened at $34.35 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $33.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of -76.33 and a beta of 0.52. Peabody Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $9.61 and a 1 year high of $39.95.

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

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 23rd. Peabody Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently -66.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BTU has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. B. Riley Financial boosted their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Peabody Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen raised Peabody Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price target on Peabody Energy from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.20.

About Peabody Energy

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.