40,899 Shares in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU) Purchased by Convergence Investment Partners LLC

Convergence Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 40,899 shares of the coal producer's stock, valued at approximately $856,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Peabody Energy by 265,937.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,023,686 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $212,949,000 after buying an additional 8,020,670 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 7.6% during 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. Progeny 3 Inc. grew its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 3,580,014 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $95,014,000 after acquiring an additional 56,280 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of 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 valued at $77,473,000 after acquiring an additional 216,887 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Peabody Energy by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,388,681 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $36,856,000 after acquiring an additional 171,272 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

BTU traded down $0.84 on Friday, hitting $14.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,130,878 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,430,980. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $18.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.44. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 0.95. Peabody Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $14.63 and a 12 month high of $29.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The coal producer reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.25). Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 8.75%. Analysts forecast that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 11.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BTU shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Peabody Energy from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Benchmark reduced their target price on shares of Peabody Energy from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

Peabody Energy Company 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.