FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE) Upgraded to "Sector Outperform" at Scotiabank

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Scotiabank from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $50.00 target price on the utilities provider's stock, up from their previous target price of $45.00. Scotiabank's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 24.01% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of FirstEnergy from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of FirstEnergy in a report on Monday, October 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $46.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of FirstEnergy from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, FirstEnergy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.27.

FirstEnergy Stock Up 0.5 %

FE stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $40.32. 2,707,049 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,905,963. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market cap of $23.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $42.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.59. FirstEnergy has a 1-year low of $35.41 and a 1-year high of $44.97.

FirstEnergy (NYSE:FE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by ($0.05). FirstEnergy had a net margin of 6.64% and a return on equity of 11.38%. The business had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. FirstEnergy's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that FirstEnergy will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstEnergy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,417.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 743,303 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,965,000 after acquiring an additional 694,313 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 5.3% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 9,098,472 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $403,517,000 after acquiring an additional 457,231 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of FirstEnergy in the second quarter valued at about $14,933,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 1,178.5% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 286,824 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $10,977,000 after acquiring an additional 264,389 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstEnergy by 4,445.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 219,434 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,732,000 after acquiring an additional 214,606 shares during the period. 89.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.