Blue Trust Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) by 94.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,361 shares of the coal producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,605 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Peabody Energy were worth $112,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BTU. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 79.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 175,424 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $4,693,000 after purchasing an additional 77,525 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management purchased a new stake in Peabody Energy during the third quarter valued at about $1,714,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Peabody Energy by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,918,536 shares of the coal producer’s stock worth $77,473,000 after purchasing an additional 216,887 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,631,707 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $202,546,000 after acquiring an additional 540,219 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Peabody Energy by 167.4% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 200,073 shares of the coal producer’s stock valued at $5,310,000 after purchasing an additional 125,244 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.44% of the company’s stock.

Peabody Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BTU opened at $16.43 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $20.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 0.95. Peabody Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $16.34 and a 52 week high of $29.94.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 12.24%. Analysts anticipate that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Peabody Energy’s payout ratio is 7.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on BTU. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Benchmark upped their price target on Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Peabody Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th.

About Peabody Energy

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.