FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Hits New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Shares of FirstEnergy hit a new 52-week high intraday at $52.29 and last traded around $50.44 on volume of about 1,178,598 shares, while the stock carries a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average price target of $49.71.
• FirstEnergy beat EPS expectations for the quarter ($0.53 vs. $0.52) and reported revenue of $3.80 billion (vs. $3.20B est.), and set FY 2026 guidance of 2.620–2.820 EPS (analysts' avg. forecast ~2.66).
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.465 ($1.86 annualized, ~3.7% yield) despite a payout ratio of 101.14%, and insiders have sold roughly 39,118 shares (~$1.99M) in the last 90 days.

FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $52.29 and last traded at $50.4390, with a volume of 1178598 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $50.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $46.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of FirstEnergy from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wolfe Research raised shares of FirstEnergy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $49.71.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.72. The company has a market cap of $29.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.61.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 10.50% and a net margin of 6.76%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. FirstEnergy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.620-2.820 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 7th will be issued a $0.465 dividend. This represents a $1.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 7th. This is a positive change from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.14%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Jason Lisowski sold 1,373 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.84, for a total value of $69,803.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James F. Oneil sold 7,945 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.60, for a total transaction of $402,017.00. Following the sale, the director owned 1,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $94,571.40. This represents a 80.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 39,118 shares of company stock valued at $1,989,532 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in FirstEnergy by 418.0% in the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 270,183 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $10,878,000 after buying an additional 218,020 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 52.7% during the 2nd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 42,632 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,716,000 after buying an additional 14,718 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,379.5% during the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 114,945 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,628,000 after acquiring an additional 107,176 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 218.6% in the 2nd quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 62,236 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,506,000 after acquiring an additional 42,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heartland Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 324,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,885,000 after acquiring an additional 72,964 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

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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