FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) Position Cut by Sasco Capital Inc. CT

Sasco Capital Inc. CT lessened its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE - Free Report) by 15.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 509,915 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 90,770 shares during the quarter. FirstEnergy makes up 3.4% of Sasco Capital Inc. CT's portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Sasco Capital Inc. CT owned 0.09% of FirstEnergy worth $22,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,317,521 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $50,422,000 after acquiring an additional 42,484 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in FirstEnergy by 52.7% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 87,811 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,361,000 after purchasing an additional 30,309 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in FirstEnergy during the second quarter valued at $596,000. Capital International Inc. CA boosted its holdings in shares of FirstEnergy by 89.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 223,152 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,618,000 after buying an additional 105,289 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan David Investments LLC IL increased its stake in shares of FirstEnergy by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 1,088,770 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,667,000 after acquiring an additional 24,512 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FE. Argus raised shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a research note on Monday, October 14th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $46.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of FirstEnergy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.00.

FirstEnergy Stock Performance

FE traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $41.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,438,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,954,501. FirstEnergy Corp. has a 1 year low of $35.41 and a 1 year high of $44.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The company has a market cap of $23.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50-day moving average of $43.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.38.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $3.96 billion. FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. FirstEnergy's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that FirstEnergy Corp. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstEnergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a $0.425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.09%. FirstEnergy's payout ratio is 109.68%.

FirstEnergy 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.