Wealthfront Advisers LLC Makes New Investment in FirstEnergy Corporation $FE

Key Points

• Wealthfront Advisers initiated a FirstEnergy position of 265,856 shares worth approximately $12.6 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 89.41% of the utility company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with seven Buy ratings and six Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $52.83.
• FirstEnergy reported quarterly EPS of $0.50, in line with estimates, while revenue of $3.68 billion exceeded expectations. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.465 per share, representing a 3.9% annualized yield.

Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 265,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,639,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in FirstEnergy by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,109,341 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,049,255,000 after purchasing an additional 761,157 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in FirstEnergy by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 18,344,403 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $841,161,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185,400 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in FirstEnergy by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,463,298 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $600,351,000 after purchasing an additional 126,834 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,722,471 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $524,815,000 after buying an additional 34,014 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 7.5% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,971,706 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $508,158,000 after buying an additional 694,449 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FE. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wolfe Research cut shares of FirstEnergy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on FirstEnergy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.83.

FirstEnergy Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE FE opened at $47.26 on Wednesday. FirstEnergy Corporation has a 52 week low of $42.72 and a 52 week high of $52.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $47.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.32. The firm has a market cap of $27.35 billion, a PE ratio of 25.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.46.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.86% and a return on equity of 10.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $0.465 dividend. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. FirstEnergy's payout ratio is presently 98.94%.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp. NYSE: FE is a U.S.-based electric utility holding company headquartered in Akron, Ohio. The company's primary business is the delivery of electricity through its regulated transmission and distribution utilities, serving residential, commercial and industrial customers across parts of the Midwest and Mid‑Atlantic. FirstEnergy's service territory includes states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and West Virginia, and it operates primarily within the PJM regional transmission organization.

FirstEnergy's core activities center on owning and operating electric distribution networks and transmission systems, maintaining and upgrading grid infrastructure, managing storm response and restoration, and offering customer programs that include energy efficiency and reliability services.

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