Swiss National Bank Reduces Holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Swiss National Bank decreased its stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,703,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 47,200 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned 0.30% of FirstEnergy worth $62,441,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in FirstEnergy by 327.3% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in FirstEnergy during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy during the third quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in FirstEnergy during the third quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

Shares of FE traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $38.95. The stock had a trading volume of 2,068,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,342,147. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.56. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 12 month low of $32.18 and a 12 month high of $40.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.55 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $37.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.25.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 12.45% and a net margin of 8.22%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. FirstEnergy's revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

FirstEnergy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.36%. This is a positive change from FirstEnergy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio is currently 94.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on FE shares. StockNews.com upgraded FirstEnergy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on FirstEnergy from $41.00 to $40.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on FirstEnergy in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on FirstEnergy from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.80.

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.