Marshall Wace LLP Buys Shares of 733,121 Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 733,121 shares of the coal producer's stock, valued at approximately $15,352,000. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.60% of Peabody Energy at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BTU. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Peabody Energy by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,785,337 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $79,265,000 after purchasing an additional 215,614 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,422,400 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $29,785,000 after purchasing an additional 125,372 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,400,044 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $29,317,000 after buying an additional 11,363 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Peabody Energy by 113.5% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,350,855 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $28,287,000 after purchasing an additional 718,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Peabody Energy by 26.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 788,426 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $16,510,000 after purchasing an additional 164,987 shares during the period. 87.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of BTU traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $12.59. The stock had a trading volume of 3,661,670 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,254,789. Peabody Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $9.61 and a 52 week high of $29.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $13.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.06. The company has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.52.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. On average, analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 11.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BTU has been the topic of several research reports. B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $27.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Benchmark reduced their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Peabody Energy Company Profile

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in coal mining business in the United States, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, India, Brazil, Belgium, Chile, France, Indonesia, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Germany, and internationally. The company operates through Seaborne Thermal, Seaborne Metallurgical, Powder River Basin, Other U.S.