FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• FirstEnergy shares crossed above their 200-day moving average, reaching $47.71 and last trading at $47.658, up 1.6%.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with eight Buy ratings and four Holds; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a $50.77 price target.
• FirstEnergy exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, while declaring a $0.465 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 3.9% annual yield.

FirstEnergy Corporation (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $47.51 and traded as high as $47.71. FirstEnergy shares last traded at $47.6580, with a volume of 5,801,370 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on FE. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $54.00 to $49.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Mizuho set a $47.00 target price on FirstEnergy in a report on Monday, October 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on FirstEnergy from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. HSBC started coverage on FirstEnergy in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised FirstEnergy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, September 19th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.77.

FirstEnergy Trading Up 1.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $27.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The business's 50 day moving average price is $45.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.51.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.08. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 11.14%. The business had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.83 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that FirstEnergy Corporation will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 6th will be paid a $0.4650 dividend. This represents a $1.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 6th. FirstEnergy's dividend payout ratio is presently 89.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the second quarter worth approximately $9,878,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in FirstEnergy by 6,066.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 495,299 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $23,547,000 after acquiring an additional 487,267 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in FirstEnergy during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,033,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its position in FirstEnergy by 612.9% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 93,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,441,000 after purchasing an additional 80,308 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in FirstEnergy by 32.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,141,365 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $54,332,000 after purchasing an additional 282,866 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.41% of the company's stock.

About FirstEnergy

FirstEnergy Corp. NYSE: FE is an electric utility company focused on the transmission and distribution of electricity. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries, the company delivers power to residential, commercial and industrial customers and maintains the poles, lines, substations and other infrastructure that support electric service.

FirstEnergy's distribution operations serve customers across parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia and Maryland. Its utility companies include Ohio Edison, The Illuminating Company, Toledo Edison, Jersey Central Power & Light, Met-Ed, Penelec, Penn Power, West Penn Power, Mon Power and The Potomac Edison Company.

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