Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) Shares Gap Up to $21.59

Peabody Energy Co. (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $21.59, but opened at $22.08. Peabody Energy shares last traded at $22.38, with a volume of 247,307 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BTU has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Peabody Energy in a report on Friday, May 3rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Peabody Energy from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, B. Riley dropped their target price on Peabody Energy from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.25.

Peabody Energy Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.86. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.12. The company has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 0.97.

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The coal producer reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.30. The company had revenue of $983.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $980.03 million. Peabody Energy had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 11.62%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.69 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Peabody Energy Co. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peabody Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th were given a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. Peabody Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.36%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 17,075.0% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,374 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,366 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Peabody Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Natixis lifted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 8,355.0% during the first quarter. Natixis now owns 1,691 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,671 shares during the period. TFO Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 48,475.0% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,943 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,939 shares during the period. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Peabody Energy by 20.6% during the fourth quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 3,690 shares of the coal producer's stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares during the period. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Peabody Energy

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.