Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Reaches New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Peabody Energy's stock reached a new 52-week high of $30.98, reflecting a significant increase from its previous close of $29.31.
• Analysts have provided mixed ratings for Peabody Energy, with four recommending a "Buy" and one a "Sell," while the average target price is $23.20.
• The company recently announced a dividend of $0.075 per share, yielding 0.9%, indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $30.54 and last traded at $30.98, with a volume of 1315992 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BTU shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Wall Street Zen cut Peabody Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. B. Riley lifted their target price on Peabody Energy from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Peabody Energy in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $23.20.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $19.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.39 and a beta of 0.67.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The coal producer reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.02). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 4.41% and a net margin of 3.43%.The company had revenue of $890.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.42 earnings per share. Peabody Energy's quarterly revenue was down 14.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Corporation will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Peabody Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Peabody Energy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BTU. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Peabody Energy by 104.3% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 315.0% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,125 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,613 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 57.7% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,229 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Peabody Energy by 48.5% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the coal producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Peabody Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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