Old West Investment Management LLC Buys New Holdings in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU)

Old West Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 36,780 shares of the coal producer's stock, valued at approximately $976,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 11,390.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,149 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Peabody Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Natixis boosted its stake in shares of Peabody Energy by 8,355.0% during the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 1,691 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the second quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Peabody Energy Stock Up 9.6 %

Peabody Energy stock traded up $2.60 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $29.80. The stock had a trading volume of 4,960,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,994,409. Peabody Energy Co. has a one year low of $20.21 and a one year high of $29.94. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $24.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.37. The company has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.20 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The coal producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.16. Peabody Energy had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.80 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BTU has been the subject of several research reports. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of Peabody Energy from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, B. Riley boosted their price target on Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th.

Peabody Energy Profile

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.