Virtu Financial LLC Takes $478,000 Position in Peabody Energy Corporation $BTU

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC has acquired a new position in Peabody Energy Corporation, purchasing 35,284 shares valued at approximately $478,000 during the first quarter.
• Peabody Energy's recent quarterly earnings reported a loss of $0.06 EPS, missing estimates, with revenues of $890.10 million, down 14.6% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.075 per share with a dividend yield of 1.6%, representing a payout ratio of 29.13%.

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 35,284 shares of the coal producer's stock, valued at approximately $478,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BTU. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 19.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 943,955 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $12,791,000 after purchasing an additional 155,529 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 64.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 7,356 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 2,882 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 117.6% during the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,406,307 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $19,055,000 after acquiring an additional 760,155 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 64.8% during the 1st quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 22,310 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 8,775 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Peabody Energy by 29.8% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 501,160 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $6,791,000 after acquiring an additional 115,172 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BTU has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Peabody Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. UBS Group initiated coverage on Peabody Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $14.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on Peabody Energy from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Peabody Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $21.60.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of BTU traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $17.03. 2,261,733 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,756,172. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $15.20 and a 200-day moving average of $14.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.21. Peabody Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $9.61 and a 52 week high of $29.94.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The coal producer reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $890.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $944.27 million. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 4.41% and a net margin of 3.43%. Peabody Energy's quarterly revenue was down 14.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Corporation will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.13%.

Peabody Energy Company 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.