Advisors Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) by 14.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 29,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,965 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in FirstEnergy were worth $1,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FE. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 99,808 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,426,000 after purchasing an additional 14,606 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in FirstEnergy by 6.6% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 86,553 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,839,000 after buying an additional 5,390 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy in the third quarter worth $590,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of FirstEnergy in the 3rd quarter valued at $123,000. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 34,555 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,533,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. 89.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on FE shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded FirstEnergy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. KeyCorp upped their price target on FirstEnergy from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, FirstEnergy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.91.

FirstEnergy Price Performance

FE opened at $42.04 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.12, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a 50-day moving average of $42.83 and a 200-day moving average of $41.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.56. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 1-year low of $35.41 and a 1-year high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.90 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. Equities analysts expect that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a $0.425 dividend. This represents a $1.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. FirstEnergy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.68%.

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.