Boston Partners Has $767.95 Million Stock Position in FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE)

Key Points

• Boston Partners increased its stake in FirstEnergy Corporation by 14.9%, owning nearly 19 million shares valued at approximately $768 million, making it the 21st largest position in their portfolio.
• FirstEnergy's quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share of $0.52, slightly exceeding analyst expectations of $0.50, despite reporting revenue of $3.40 billion, which was below estimates.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.445 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 4.1% and a payout ratio of 78.76%.

Boston Partners boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,962,859 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,459,779 shares during the period. FirstEnergy comprises about 0.9% of Boston Partners' portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Boston Partners owned 3.29% of FirstEnergy worth $767,952,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 226.9% in the 1st quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 706 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FE traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $43.46. The stock had a trading volume of 3,283,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,961,211. The company's 50-day moving average price is $41.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.92. The company has a market capitalization of $25.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. FirstEnergy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 9.31% and a return on equity of 11.31%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. FirstEnergy's payout ratio is 78.76%.

Insider Activity

In other FirstEnergy news, CAO Jason Lisowski sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.97, for a total value of $503,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 183 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,680.51. This represents a 98.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Friday, April 25th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $46.00 target price (down previously from $47.00) on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Bank of America raised shares of FirstEnergy from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $42.00 to $45.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.08.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

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.