Allianz Asset Management GmbH Buys New Shares in FirstEnergy Corporation $FE

Key Points

• Allianz Asset Management acquired 221,307 FirstEnergy shares worth approximately $10.5 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 89.41% of the utility’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with seven Buy ratings and six Holds, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $52.83, despite some recent target and rating reductions.
• FirstEnergy reported quarterly EPS of $0.50, matching estimates, while revenue of $3.68 billion exceeded expectations. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.465, equivalent to a 4.0% annualized yield.

Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 221,307 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,521,000.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

FE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered FirstEnergy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 21st. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of FirstEnergy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.83.

FirstEnergy Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE FE opened at $46.53 on Wednesday. FirstEnergy Corporation has a 12 month low of $42.87 and a 12 month high of $52.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $47.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.18. The stock has a market cap of $26.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.45.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.50. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 10.51% and a net margin of 6.86%.The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

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

About FirstEnergy

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.

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