FirstEnergy Corporation $FE Shares Bought by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in FirstEnergy Corporation by 59.4%, holding 1,205,121 shares valued at $48.71 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Institutional investors own approximately 89.41% of FirstEnergy's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms such as Vanguard and Boston Partners.
• The company recently reported earnings of $0.52 EPS for the latest quarter, beating analyst expectations, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.445 per share with an annualized yield of 4.1%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 59.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,205,121 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 449,234 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of FirstEnergy worth $48,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dakota Wealth Management grew its position in FirstEnergy by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 7,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 2.4% during the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 10,807 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $437,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.2% during the first quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 22,677 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $917,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 19,838 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $835,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 5.5% during the first quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,492 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $222,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the period. 89.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FE traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $43.79. The company had a trading volume of 3,218,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,929,149. 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 twelve month low of $37.58 and a twelve month high of $44.97. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.48.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.02. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 9.31% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. FirstEnergy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.400-2.600 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.445 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. FirstEnergy's payout ratio is presently 78.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FE. Barclays upgraded shares of FirstEnergy from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $49.00 in a research note on Monday. UBS Group set a $44.00 price target on shares of FirstEnergy and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $46.00 price target (down from $47.00) on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.31.

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.