FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) Holdings Raised by Fulton Bank N.A.

Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 123.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,687 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 17,481 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A.'s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $1,281,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Balanced Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in FirstEnergy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Balanced Wealth Group LLC now owns 26,991 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 69.3% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 623 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 19,838 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $835,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC lifted its stake in FirstEnergy by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 7,290 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FE traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $40.65. 1,444,177 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,714,237. FirstEnergy Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $44.97. The firm has a market cap of $23.46 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 11.38% and a net margin of 6.64%. The company had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th were paid a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. This is a positive change from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.38%. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio is currently 94.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jon Taylor K. sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.03, for a total value of $516,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 99,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,299,514.57. This trade represents a 10.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FE has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $48.00 price target (up from $47.00) on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group increased their target price on FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America raised shares of FirstEnergy from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $42.00 to $45.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Mizuho set a $43.00 price objective on shares of FirstEnergy in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $46.00.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp., through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in the United States. It operates through Regulated Distribution and Regulated Transmission segments. The company owns and operates coal-fired, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power generating facilities.