FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) Stock Holdings Lifted by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 54.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,127 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 12,053 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $1,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FE. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in FirstEnergy by 69.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 623 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. WASHINGTON TRUST Co boosted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 293.0% during the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 786 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.41% of the company's stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

NYSE FE traded up $1.07 on Friday, hitting $41.87. The stock had a trading volume of 8,445,299 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,480,434. The company's 50-day moving average is $39.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.69. The stock has a market cap of $24.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. FirstEnergy Corp. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.03). FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. On average, analysts expect that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be issued a $0.445 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 7th. This is a boost from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.25%. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 104.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wolfe Research downgraded FirstEnergy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price objective on FirstEnergy from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, FirstEnergy currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.17.

FirstEnergy 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.