Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Buys Shares of 246,500 Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 246,500 shares of the coal producer's stock, valued at approximately $5,162,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned 0.20% of Peabody Energy as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BTU. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $15,352,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,565,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 1,543,915 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $32,330,000 after acquiring an additional 360,000 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 105.5% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 646,152 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $13,530,000 after acquiring an additional 331,759 shares during the period. Finally, PDT Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,515,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Peabody Energy Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of Peabody Energy stock traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.04. The company had a trading volume of 2,632,571 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,452,999. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50 day moving average of $13.19 and a 200 day moving average of $17.14. Peabody Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $9.61 and a 52-week high of $29.94.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The coal producer reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.20. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. The business had revenue of $937.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $976.57 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.30 EPS. The company's revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio is 11.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BTU shares. B. Riley reduced their target price on Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Benchmark cut their price target on Peabody Energy from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th.

Peabody Energy Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in coal mining business in the United States, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, India, Brazil, Belgium, Chile, France, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Germany, and internationally. The company operates through Seaborne Thermal, Seaborne Metallurgical, Powder River Basin, Other U.S.