FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) Shares Bought by International Assets Investment Management LLC

International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 2,627.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 212,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 204,724 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC's holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $7,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 549.0% during the 4th quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 649 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the period. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Certified Advisory Corp bought a new position in FirstEnergy in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC bought a new position in FirstEnergy in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. 89.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on FE. StockNews.com cut FirstEnergy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. KeyCorp raised their target price on FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $40.22.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

Shares of FirstEnergy stock traded down $0.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $37.41. 2,001,906 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,734,197. The company has a market capitalization of $21.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.38. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 52-week low of $32.18 and a 52-week high of $41.42.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 8.56%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be given a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.54%. This is a positive change from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 93.92%.

FirstEnergy Company Profile

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.