Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Stock Position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 55,234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,133 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $2,450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,150.9% during the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in FirstEnergy by 1,138.9% during the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 615 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in FirstEnergy in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Sachetta LLC increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 929 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company’s stock.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

Shares of FirstEnergy stock opened at $43.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 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. The business has a 50-day moving average of $43.56 and a 200 day moving average of $40.80. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 12 month low of $34.73 and a 12 month high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.56. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 12.12%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays upped their price objective on FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Argus raised FirstEnergy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on FirstEnergy from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.91.

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.