Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Shares gapped down: KEP opened Monday at $14.04 after closing at $14.87 and was last trading around $13.78 on volume of 219,026 shares.
• Analyst sentiment weakened: Recent downgrades from Wall Street Zen and Weiss Ratings contribute to a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold for the stock.
• Valuation and financials mixed: The company has a low P/E of 2.90 and $17.5B market cap but weak liquidity (current ratio 0.46), elevated debt-to-equity (1.70), and reported ($0.10) EPS on $13.61B in quarterly revenue.

Korea Electric Power Corporation (NYSE:KEP - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $14.87, but opened at $14.04. Korea Electric Power shares last traded at $13.78, with a volume of 219,026 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on KEP shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Korea Electric Power from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut Korea Electric Power from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Korea Electric Power Stock Performance

The firm's fifty day moving average is $19.39 and its 200 day moving average is $17.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.90, a PEG ratio of 0.05 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

Korea Electric Power (NYSE:KEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The utilities provider reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter. Korea Electric Power had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter.

Institutional Trading of Korea Electric Power

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AdvisorShares Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Korea Electric Power in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,017,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 530,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $7,558,000 after purchasing an additional 87,682 shares during the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 87.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 380,348 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,964,000 after purchasing an additional 176,920 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Korea Electric Power by 22.0% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,201,548 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $17,110,000 after purchasing an additional 216,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Korea Electric Power by 216.7% in the 2nd quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 242,832 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,458,000 after purchasing an additional 166,154 shares during the last quarter.

About Korea Electric Power

Korea Electric Power (KEP) is a South Korea–based integrated electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. The company's activities span power plant operation and maintenance, grid management, fuel procurement and power trading, as well as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for large-scale power projects. Its asset base includes a mix of thermal, nuclear, hydro and renewable generation capacity, and the company supports system planning and reliability functions for the national electricity network.

In addition to core utility operations, KEP provides a range of technical and consulting services tied to power infrastructure, including plant construction, refurbishment and decommissioning support.

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