Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Upgraded to Buy at B. Riley Financial

Key Points

• B. Riley Financial upgraded Peabody Energy from “neutral” to “buy” and set a $30 price target, implying approximately 31% upside from the reported $22.87 share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Peabody has three Buy, two Hold and one Sell rating, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.12.
• Peabody’s latest quarter underperformed expectations, reporting a $0.74 loss per share versus a projected $0.38 loss, although revenue increased 12.7% year over year to approximately $1 billion.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at B. Riley Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Briefing.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $30.00 price objective on the coal producer's stock. B. Riley Financial's target price would suggest a potential upside of 31.19% from the company's current price.

BTU has been the subject of several other reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Peabody Energy from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $26.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised Peabody Energy from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Benchmark cut their price target on Peabody Energy from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.12.

Peabody Energy Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:BTU opened at $22.87 on Monday. Peabody Energy has a 52-week low of $20.06 and a 52-week high of $41.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.01. The company has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.25 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.49.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The coal producer reported ($0.74) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.38) by ($0.36). The business had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. Peabody Energy had a negative return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 4.56%. Peabody Energy's quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.23) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Peabody Energy will post 0.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peabody Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Peabody Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 1,513.7% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,178 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 286.3% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the period. Main Street Group LTD acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 298.3% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,310 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 2,479 shares during the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Peabody Energy

Peabody Energy Corp. is a global coal producer and supplier of energy and industrial fuels. The company mines, processes and markets thermal coal, which is primarily used for electricity generation, and metallurgical coal, which is used in steelmaking. Peabody also provides coal-trading and logistics services and works with customers to transport products to domestic and international markets.

Peabody operates mines in the United States and Australia, serving electric utilities, steel producers and other industrial customers.

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