MQS Management LLC Acquires New Holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

MQS Management LLC bought a new position in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 9,186 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $352,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FE. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,150.9% in the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in FirstEnergy by 1,138.9% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 615 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in FirstEnergy in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the second quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on FirstEnergy from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on FirstEnergy from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.18.

FirstEnergy Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE FE opened at $44.00 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $42.50 and a 200 day moving average of $39.98. The company has a market capitalization of $25.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.43. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 1 year low of $32.18 and a 1 year high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.47 billion. FirstEnergy had a return on equity of 12.12% and a net margin of 6.61%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.425 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. FirstEnergy’s payout ratio is 97.70%.

FirstEnergy 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.