Mariner LLC Boosts Position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Mariner LLC lifted its stake in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,039 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 13,196 shares during the period. Mariner LLC's holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $3,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Covestor Ltd raised its position in FirstEnergy by 69.3% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 623 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its position in FirstEnergy by 293.0% during the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 786 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the period. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 89.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

NYSE:FE traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $42.36. 5,278,317 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,560,177. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $40.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.70. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $44.97. The company has a market cap of $24.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.68 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 11.38% and a net margin of 6.64%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.445 per share. This represents a $1.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. This is a boost from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio is currently 94.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Friday. Wolfe Research cut shares of FirstEnergy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $45.75.

About FirstEnergy

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.