FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Given New $40.00 Price Target at Scotiabank

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Free Report) had its price objective cut by Scotiabank from $41.00 to $40.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the utilities provider's stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on FE. StockNews.com downgraded shares of FirstEnergy from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a buy rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $40.33.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FE traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $38.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,378,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,377,068. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $37.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.01. FirstEnergy has a one year low of $32.18 and a one year high of $41.17. The company has a market cap of $21.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11 and a beta of 0.48.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 8.56% and a return on equity of 13.52%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that FirstEnergy will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This is a boost from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.45%. FirstEnergy's payout ratio is 90.61%.

Institutional Trading of FirstEnergy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FE. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in FirstEnergy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in FirstEnergy by 327.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 792 shares during the period. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.